Former Philippine president Duterte still in running for mayor

MANILA -- Former Philippine president Rodrigo Duterte is still a candidate for mayor of Davao City in the 2025 midterm elections despite his current detention in The Hague in the Netherlands, a chief of the Philippine Commission on Elections (Comelec) has said.

"As far as the Comelec is concerned, he (Duterte) is still a candidate. His name is on the ballot, and voters can vote for him," George Garcia told reporters on Wednesday.

Garcia said, "The arrest of a person accused of a crime, even in our own country, is not a sign to remove the candidate's name (from the ballot), disqualify him, or deprive him of his civil or political rights."

On May 12, Filipinos will vote in the midterm elections to elect 12 senators, new members of the House of Representatives, and local leaders.

Duterte, 79, had served as mayor of Davao, a southern metropolis, for 22 years before he became Philippine president in 2016.

Duterte was detained on Tuesday morning upon his return to Manila from abroad, following an arrest warrant issued by the International Criminal Court (ICC) over his "war on drugs" campaign, a move he has questioned.

He left Manila for The Hague, home to the ICC, on Tuesday night.