Senator Alan Peter Cayetano on Monday was elected Senate president after a dramatic leadership shakeup that unseated longtime Senate chief Vicente Sotto III following a majority vote by lawmakers.
Cayetano secured the chamber’s top post after 13 senators voted in favor of the leadership change, while nine backed Sotto and two abstained.
The turnover marked one of the most significant political realignments in the Senate in recent years, reshaping the chamber’s leadership amid heightened political tensions.
Senator Jinggoy Estrada presided over the session after senators declared all Senate positions vacant ahead of the leadership vote.
Those who voted in favor of Cayetano were Senators Pia Cayetano, Loren Legarda, Joel Villanueva, Jinggoy Estrada, Francis Escudero, Rodante Marcoleta, Ronald dela Rosa, Christopher Go, Robin Padilla, Imee Marcos, Camille Villar, and Mark Villar.
Voting to retain Sotto were Senators Panfilo Lacson, Risa Hontiveros, Francis Pangilinan, Paolo Benigno Aquino IV, Erwin Tulfo, Raffy Tulfo, Sherwin Gatchalian, and Manuel “Lito” Lapid, while Senators Joseph Victor Ejercito and Juan Miguel Zubiri abstained.
Loren Legarda was later elected Senate president pro tempore, replacing Lacson, while Cayetano formally took his oath before Senator Camille Villar.
Before the leadership vote, Cayetano informed the chamber that at least 13 senators were seeking a change in leadership, while also acknowledging his past working relationship with Sotto despite political differences.
“We found a way to disagree in private and then work together for the country,” Cayetano said.
Following his election, Cayetano called for unity inside the chamber and urged senators to focus on national concerns amid growing political and economic pressures.
“In every crisis, there are big winners and there are big losers. Unfortunately, it is the poorest of the poor who are always the losers,” he said.
“I take a step forward, my dear colleagues, and offer myself to serve you,” Cayetano added.
“I am here to respect the Office of the President, the Office of the Vice President, the House of Representatives, and each one of you.”