For Senator Imee Marcos, running as an independent in the May 2025 polls seems like the optimum choice to make considering her desire to protect her "ading" or younger sibling, President Marcos, as well as her friends.

"Ang kinatatakutan ko lamang, yung init ng halalan. Alam naman natin na nagiging malupit. Minsan, masakit yung sinasabi. Kung ano-anong banat, aba'y hindi ko matiis yun. Kaya maigi na lamang lumayo at magsarili kahit napakahirap (My only concern is the heat of the elections. We all know it can get brutal. Sometimes, the words spoken can be hurtful. The various insults, I just can't take them. That's why it's better for me to keep my distance and be on my own, no matter how difficult it may be)," she said in a press conference on Monday, Sept. 30.

"Para hindi na malagay sa alanganin ang kapatid ko. Kasi kinakabahan na nga siya baka kung ano daw, eh yung aking ading baka malagay pa sa alanganin at ah yung mga kaibigan masaktan, maigi na yung tumayo akong magisa kahit napakahirap umikot ng magisa (So that my brother won't be put in a bad spot. He's anxious about what could happen, to avoid puting my younger brother  at risk or my friends from getting hurt, it's better that I stand alone, despite the difficulty of doing it alone)," she added.

Two days ago, the senator posted a video wherein she stated that she chose to stand alone following her inclusion in the administration's senatorial slate under the Alyansa Para sa Bagong Pilipinas banner for the May 2025 elections.

Asked if she's withdrawing from the Senate slate led by her brother, she categorically said, “Yes, obvious ba (Isn’t it obvious)?”

“Yung nanay ko nalulungkot eh. Sabi niya, bakit naman gano’n? Sabi ko, mas maganda naman para sa pamilya, para sa kabutihan ng lahat. Para nakakausap natin lahat ng sektor, meron tayong daan na makisuyo sa iba’t ibang panig. At yun naman ang turo ng aking ama, isang bansa, isang diwa. Huwag tayo magkawatak-watak (My mother felt sad about it. She asked why it came to that. I told her that it's actually better for the family, for the greater good of all. So we can communicate with all sectors, we have a way to negotiate with different parties. And that's what my father taught me: one nation, one spirit. Let's not be divided),” she said.

Senator Marcos stressed how it's a tremendous sacrifice to stand alone but emphasized the need to be free, to cross the line, to talk to all parties, and to get things done.

"UniTeam was a dream that I shared in 2022. And I hold fast to that dream of unity for all Filipinos," she said.

Marcos was asked if she has plans to mediate between her brother and Vice President Sara Duterte due to their supposed rift, she said that it's only secondary to her intention to become independent.

President Marcos stated that the lady senator's decision to withdraw was "fine" with him.

UniTeam refers to the 2022 alliance between President Marcos and Vice President Duterte.