A video of over 100,000 Filipinos singing Ariana Grande’s “Break Free” while gathered at a ”People’s Rally” on March 20 in support of presidential candidate Leni Robredo in Pasig City caught the attention of the American singer-songwriter herself.
The pop star took to her official Instagram story to repost two videos of the event.
“I could not believe this was real,” she wrote over the video, showing a sea of people wearing pink, the official color of Robredo’s political campaign, while singing out loud to her 2014 hit song. “I love you more than words.”
The song was also performed by drag queens during the rally, led by Minty Fresh, who showed up dressed like Grande in all pink. The “PasigLaban Para sa Tropa Pasig City People’s Rally,” which many Filipino celebrities and bands attended, marked the biggest “Leni-Kiko” rally across the country with over 130,000 supporters in attendance.
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Robredo, who is the current vice president of the Philippines, is the only female candidate running for president. She has been a public critic of President Rodrigo Duterte’s war on drugs and has built her campaign on opposition against bad governance and principle-based political party system reform. Her running mate and vice presidential candidate is Senator Francis Kiko Pangilinan, who is also a Filipino lawyer known for his support of Filipino farmers.
A survey conducted in January by the independent pollster Pulse Asia on the 2022 elections saw 60% of respondents express a preference for presidential candidate Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr., a Filipino politician and son of former president and dictator Ferdinand Marcos. Robredo came in second place as the preferred candidate of only 16% of respondents.
Over the weekend, the female presidential candidate also received a nod from Filipino American beauty influencer and social media personality Bretman Rock. He showed his support for Robredo on his Instagram story by reposting photos of her, including a screenshot of her in the Commission on Elections’ presidential debate on March 19.
He quoted Robredo, writing, “This statement shook me to the core… My president is a WOMAN,” along with a Philippine flag emoji.
In her closing statement during Saturday’s debate, Robredo told voters to stop looking for candidates who refuse to show up, an apparent jab at Bongbong, who was the only presidential candidate who did not join the debate.
“True leaders show up and man up. This is why, come May, the best man for the job is a woman,” she ended.
Feature Image via @bretmanrock, @arianagrande
