1. Leni Robredo previously served as the representative of the 3rd district of Camarines Sur from 2013 to 2016.
48 Facts About Leni Robredo
1. 2.
Leni Robredo is the second woman to serve as vice president of the Philippines, after Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, and the first vice president from the Bicol Region.
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Leni Robredo was awarded by the government of Thailand in 2016 for her work and advocacy in women's empowerment and gender equality.
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Leni Robredo has received backlash from government supporters for her being staunchly critical to Duterte's policies such as the war on drugs, counter-insurgency initiatives, COVID-19 pandemic response, and soft stance toward China.
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Leni Robredo has been a constant target of disinformation, with many articles making false claims about her personal life to discredit her.
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Leni Robredo announced her presidential campaign in the 2022 presidential elections with Liberal Party leader and Senator Francis Pangilinan as her running mate.
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Leni Robredo left office shortly after and founded Angat Buhay, a nonprofit organization.
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Leni Robredo is the Liberal Party candidate for mayor in the 2025 Naga, Camarines Sur, local elections.
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Leni Robredo was born as Maria Leonor Santo Tomas Gerona on April 23,1965, in Naga, Camarines Sur, Philippines.
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Leni Robredo attended the basic education department of Universidad de Sta.
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Leni Robredo earned her degree in Bachelor of Arts in Economics from the University of the Philippines School of Economics at UP Diliman in 1986, and proceeded to study law at the University of Nueva Caceres, graduating in 1992.
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Leni Robredo passed the bar exams on her second attempt in 1996 and was admitted to the Integrated Bar of the Philippines in May 1997.
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From 1998 to 2008, Leni Robredo became the coordinator of Sentro ng Alternatibong Lingap Panligan, a Naga-based alternative legal support group.
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In 2012, Leni Robredo was named the chairperson of the Liberal Party in Camarines Sur.
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Leni Robredo ran in Camarines Sur's 3rd congressional district during the Philippine general elections of 2013.
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Leni Robredo was known for being a strong advocate of the Freedom of Information Act, and a strong supporter of the Bangsamoro Basic Law.
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Leni Robredo authored the People Empowerment Bill, which sought to allow more participation from Filipinos in decision and policy-making, and the Participatory Budget Process Bill, which sought to increase participation in budget-related decisions in government projects by locals.
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Leni Robredo was a key supporter of: HB 4911: People Empowerment Bill to create a partnership between local governments and civil society through the establishment of a people's council in every local government unit.
19.
On October 5,2015, after her three daughters set aside their initial objections, Leni Robredo announced that she would run for the post of Vice President of the Philippines under the Liberal Party in the 2016 election, as the running mate of presidential candidate Mar Roxas.
20.
Leni Robredo won the election with 14,418,817 votes, or 35.11 percent of cast ballots, narrowly defeating her closest rival, Senator Bongbong Marcos, by 263,473 votes or by 0.64 percent.
21.
Leni Robredo was sworn in as vice president of the Philippines on June 30,2016, at the Quezon City Reception House, which she had since used as her office.
22.
Leni Robredo first met President Rodrigo Duterte personally at the Armed Forces of the Philippines change-of-command ceremonies at Camp Aguinaldo on July 1,2016, a day after their inauguration.
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On December 4,2016, Leni Robredo was informed by Cabinet Secretary Leoncio Evasco Jr.
24.
In March 2017, Leni Robredo sent a video appeal to the United Nations in which she claimed that the Philippine National Police had unwritten policies in its operations in the drug war, where family members of drug peddlers were allegedly being held hostage and relatives of drug users and pushers wanted by the police were being killed.
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Leni Robredo claimed of a "palit ulo" scheme, where police allegedly rounded up families of accused drug personalities to demand for their relatives to be taken in exchange for the accused drug personalities if they could not be found.
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On November 4,2019, Duterte assigned Leni Robredo to be co-chairperson of the Inter-Agency Committee on Anti-Illegal Drugs until the end of his term in 2022, said presidential spokesman Salvador Panelo.
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The Office of the Vice President under Leni Robredo was identified by the Commission on Audit in 2017 for delays in liquidating travel expenses.
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Leni Robredo has spearheaded programs under the Office of the Vice President.
29.
The OVP under Leni Robredo has partnered with 372 organizations in the implementation of Angat Buhay.
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Leni Robredo said her office was already preparing to help in the rehabilitation of Marawi City, primarily through its flagship anti-poverty program.
31.
On October 24,2018, Leni Robredo officially launched the opposition senatorial slate for the 2019 senatorial elections, declaring that 'the opposition is alive.
32.
Leni Robredo has been a constant victim of memes and "fake news" articles since taking office in 2016, some of which she claims emanate from a Senate source.
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Leni Robredo has demonstrated the falsehood of these statements against her.
34.
Leni Robredo officially announced her campaign for president of the Philippines on October 7,2021, the day she filed her certificate of candidacy before the Commission on Elections as an independent candidate despite her being the party leader of the Liberal Party of the Philippines.
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Hours after the announcement, a source from Leni Robredo's camp revealed that she had selected senator and Liberal Party president Francis Pangilinan as her running mate.
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On October 5,2024, Leni Robredo officially filed her candidacy for mayor under the Liberal Party banner before the Commission on Elections office in Naga.
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Leni Robredo has repeatedly expressed her dissent for the government's war on drugs, particularly the policy of Oplan Tokhang.
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Leni Robredo then visited wounded soldiers in Iligan to give support and contributions.
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Leni Robredo questioned the coverage and prolongation of the implementation and called on members of the Congress to review and validate the implementation as a "constitutional duty".
40.
Leni Robredo said that the martial law in Mindanao has failed to address threats in the region.
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On November 26,2019, Leni Robredo called on the government to assure that troop deployments in Samar, Negros, and Bicol would not lead to martial law.
42.
Leni Robredo voiced her support for the proposed anti-turncoat law in the House.
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Leni Robredo criticized China for establishing missiles in the South China Sea.
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Leni Robredo says that China must first recognize the Philippines v China arbitral ruling before forging any agreement with the Philippines, a position that contrasts with that of Duterte's more diplomatic approach.
45.
From May 14,2017, Robredo has hosted her own public service radio program entitled BISErbisyong LENI, aired on DZXL, until June 26,2022, after her term end as vice president.
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Leni Robredo is fluent in Filipino, English, and her native Central Bikol.
47.
Leni Robredo was named among Harvard University's Hauser Leaders in Fall 2022, received the Leadership and Governance Award from Saint Theresa's College of Quezon City in March 2023, was recognized as the 2023 Most Distinguished Alumna by the University of the Philippines Alumni Association, and participated as a fellow in the Rockefeller Foundation Bellagio Center Residency Program in Bellagio, Italy, in 2024.
48.
Rhyncholaeliocattleya Leni Robredo, which was only named upon Robredo's announcement of her candidacy for president in October 2021, was said to have taken seven years to bloom since its pollination from two orchid species.