Pia Cayetano, now on her third term in the Senate, seeks reelection

MANILA, Philippines – Senator Pia Cayetano officially sought reelection in 2025 on Sunday, October 6, filing her certificate of candidacy (COC) with the Commission on Elections (Comelec).

She is only the second senatorial aspirant from President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s Alyansa para sa Bagong Pilipinas to skip the standard media interview that follows the COC filing, after Senator Lito Lapid.

A reelection would ensure that there are two of them in the family in the Senate, as the term of her brother Senator Alan Peter won’t expire until 2028.

They part of the Cayetano dynasty in Taguig: Pia’s sister-in-law Lani is mayor, while her brother Lino was also formerly a mayor who is now seeking to represent Taguig-Pateros’ 1st District in the House of Representatives.

Senator Cayetano first joined the upper chamber in 2004, succeeding her father who died of liver cancer in 2003. She won reelection in 2010, joined the House for three years after she became term-limited in 2016, and then finally returned to the Senate in 2019.

Senator Cayetano is a known champion for women’s rights, pushing for key legislations during her time in Congress, such as the Magna Carta of Women, Expanded Breastfeeding Act, and the Reproductive Health Law.

But that reputation has also been tainted by her silence when Rodrigo Duterte, whom her family allied with when he was president, made misogynistic remarks against women.

When asked to react on Duterte’s ways in 2018, also during COC filing, she evaded the question, saying: “I think my track record speaks for itself.”

Cayetano also helped pass key measures on health, such as the Food and Drugs Administration Law, Sin Tax Reform Law, and the Universal Cheaper Medicine Act.

Cayetano, a triathlete, rode a bike to Manila Hotel with fellow cyclists to file her COC. – Rappler.com