Elizabeth Zimmerman
| Elizabeth Zimmerman | |
|---|---|
| Born |
Elizabeth Abellana Zimmerman April 14, 1948 Davao, Philippines |
| Education | Ateneo de Davao University |
| Spouse(s) | Rodrigo Duterte (m. 1973; ann. 2000) |
| Children |
Paolo Duterte Sara Duterte Sebastian Duterte |
Elizabeth Abellana Zimmerman (born April 14, 1948) is the former wife of Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte.
Zimmerman was born on April 14, 1948 in Davao province. Her grandfather is from Germany who migrated to the United States. She attended Ateneo de Davao and worked as a flight stewardess for Philippine Airlines. Zimmerman is ethnically Jewish American.
Zimmerman ran a bid to be elected as a city councilor of Davao City in 2001 but was unsuccessful. She joined the Byaheng Du30 bus caravan which went around Visayas and Mindanao in support of her former husband's presidential bid at the 2016 Philippine presidential election.
Zimmerman was married to Davao City mayor Rodrigo Duterte (who later became President of the Philippines) for over 25 years with whom she has three children including Paolo and Sara Duterte. She filed for annulment in 1998. For a few months at the time the annulment was filed, Zimmerman had been living with her brother in Manila but occasionally visited Davao City since her children with Duterte were still studying there. Duterte has admitted that his ex-wife left him after she caught him cheating. The annulment was granted in 2000. After the annulment, Zimmerman remained friends with her former husband. She chose to continue using "Duterte" as part of her surname despite the annulment saying that her marriage with Duterte has never been nullified in the Roman Catholic Church.
In August 2015, Zimmerman was diagnosed with Stage 3 breast cancer.
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