Naga City Mayor Leni Robredo reiterated that she will not run for the presidency in the 2028 national elections.

In an interview with local reporters in Naga carried by the Radio Mindanao Network on Monday, Robredo said: ''I had decided I will not leave Naga. If I decide later on that I am going to seek re-election, I will not return to national (politics). I settled this before 2025.''

Robredo, 61, lost the presidential election to Ferdinand Marcos Jr in the 2022 polls. She defeated Marcos for the vice presidency in 1996.

This is the second time this year that Robredo, considered the standard bearer of the opposition, has turned down a presidential run.

Recent surveys have shown that the big, early lead of Vice President Sara Duterte have been slowly going down. Last week, OCTA Research said Duterte's lead over Robredo has gone down to seven percentage points in its survey for the 2028 elections.

Robredo said she lacked '' political savviness to traverse national politics.

''Nothing can make me change my decision,'' she said.

In separate statements, ML Partylist Rep. Leila de Lima and Senator Francis Pangilinan said they hope Robredo could change her mind. PHS