Which hopefuls will make up the 2025 senatorial ticket of President Marcos?
A meeting at the Palace on Monday, August 19, attended by leaders of the political parties that comprise the 2025 mega alliance of the administration has set off a wave of speculations that President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has completed his senatorial lineup for the midterms.
It didn’t help that his senator-sister has preempted any Malacañang announcement with her own confirmation of the 2025 senatorial slate, but one party leader present during that meeting said any list circulating online is false.
So who’s telling the truth?
Here’s what we know so far.
Senator Imee Marcos, who wasn’t part of that meeting, told reporters about the supposed lineup. According to a GMA News Online report, the names include:
- Interior Secretary Benhur Abalos
- Makati Mayor Abby Binay
- Senator Pia Cayetano
- Former senator Ping Lacson
- Senator Lito Lapid
- Senator Imee Marcos
- Senator Bong Revilla
- Former senator Manny Pacquiao
- Former Senate president Tito Sotto
- Senator Francis Tolentino
- House Deputy Majority Leader Erwin Tulfo
- House Deputy Speaker Camille Villar
In a separate interview, Camarines Sur 2nd District Representative LRay Villafuerte named seven people who are being considered to be part of the administration slate. They are Abalos, Cayetano, Imee Marcos, Revilla, Sotto, Tolentino, and Villar — names who are also part of Senator Marcos’ list.
It’s important to take note that some of the people on Imee’s list have yet to officially declare their senatorial candidacies.
Binay, who is term-limited in Makati in 2025, was also flirting with the possibility of a mayoral bid in Taguig, potentially challenging a Cayetano.
Abalos has also yet to unveil his plans for the midterms, but his recurring role at a soap opera of GMA7 indicates efforts to further boost his mass appeal.
Congressman Tulfo has consistently topped pre-election surveys, but said in July that he had no plans yet to run for the Senate.
More denials
Tulfo was quoted as saying on Tuesday, August 19, that as far as he knows, the administration still has no final senatorial lineup.
Partido Federal ng Pilipinas (PFP), the party of President Marcos, also released a statement on Tuesday to dispel speculations surrounding the administration’s senatorial ticket.
PFP president and South Cotabato Governor Jun Tamayo said parties that make up the mega alliance were asked to submit their list of candidates until September 15. These are PFP, Lakas-CMD, Nacionalista Party, National Unity Party, and the Nationalist People’s Coalition.
“There is no truth to any list circulating,” Tamayo said in Filipino. “We will make an announcement on the senatorial lineup of the administration once all members of the Alyansa para sa Bagong Pilipinas come to a decision.”
The filing of certificates of candidacies begins in October, so the administration — and its political opponents — are on a tight schedule to finalize their alliances and draw a line in the sand. – Rappler.com