WITH 17 months left before the 2013 midterm elections, some members of the House of Representatives have already expressed their intentions to run for the Senate or at least have been considered as having a statistical chance of winning a seat based on a Pulse Asia survey.
Here s a list of incumbent congressmen likely to run for a Senate seat in 2013:
1) Deputy Speaker Lorenzo Erin Tañada III
Tañada is a three-term congressman representing the fourth district of Quezon. He is the eldest son of former Senator Wigberto Bobby Tañada. The Liberal Party (LP) member is pushing for the passage of a Freedom of Information Act and has filed several measures promoting the protection of human rights.
In the upcoming impeachment trial of Supreme Court (SC) Chief Justice Renato Corona, Tañada has been designated as the deputy spokesperson of the House prosecution panel. He was previously assigned as part of the 11-member panel.
In a text message to Sun.Star, Tañada confirmed plans of running in the 2013 elections. A Pulse Asia conducted in November, however, revealed that if the polls were to be conducted already, he would have only ranked anywhere between the 40th to 64th spot.
2) Bayan Muna party-list Representative Teddy Casiño
Casiño is a progressive party-list congressman who has been actively pushing for the rights of the marginalized sectors. The three-term legislator who chairs the House Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship Development has also initiated moves to put former President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo in jail. Recently, the Office of the Ombudsman charged Arroyo with graft based on the complaint filed by Casiño on the anomalous National Broadband Network (NBN) deal with China s ZTE Corporation.
In his official website (www.teddycasino.com), it states: With his idealism, sterling track record and platform for change, Teddy could very well be our next representative in the Senate.
In the November Pulse Asia survey, Casiño only ranked somewhere between the 45th and 67th spots.
3) Cagayan Representative Juan “Jack” Ponce Enrile Jr.
The lawmaker is the only son and namesake of Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile. He has already served the first district of Cagayan for three terms from 1998 to 2007 before winning the seat again in 2010. Enrile is an advocate of food sovereignty and credit card reform, among others.
He would likely secure a senatorial seat if the elections would have been held last month according to the Pulse Asia survey.
4) San Juan City Representative Joseph Victor “JV” Ejercito
Before being a San Juan representative, he had already served as its mayor from 2001 to 2010 and has been an awardee of The Outstanding Young Men (TOYM) in the government and public service category back in 2007. JV is the son of former President Joseph “Erap” Estrada.
Ejercito has a 30.4 percent chance of winning in the senatorial polls, the Pulse Asia survey reported. The survey showed he would have placed between the 5th to 12th and last spot.
In a text message, the lawmaker said that while he is elated to be considered by the Filipino people as their possible senator by 2013, he feels that it is still too early to decide about seeking a higher position.
5) Aurora Representative Juan Edgardo “Sonny” Angara
The three-term congressman is the son of incumbent Senator Edgardo Angara. He was among the recipients of the TOYM awards for 2010.
Angara has recently been assigned as one of the deputy spokespersons of the House prosecution panel on the upcoming Senate trial on the impeachment of SC Chief Justice Corona.
He would have ranked anywhere from the 11th to 17th spot if the polls were to be conducted this year with a 24.3 percent chance of winning. Angara, however, has no definite plans to pursue a seat in the Senate yet.
6) Zambales Representative Ma. Milagros “Mitos” Magsaysay
Magsaysay, a vocal critic of the Aquino administration, has managed to place in the top 30 senators based on the Pulse Asia survey but said that while she has no definite plans yet for 2013, there is that slightest possibility that she will run for the Senate.
Magsaysay earlier figured in a debate with Deputy presidential spokesperson Abigail Valte over Twitter and had scolded former ANC anchor Ramon “Ricky” Carandang (whose name also appeared in the Pulse Asia survey), head of the Presidential Communications Development and Strategic Planning Office, during a budget deliberation. She said that Carandang was “a spoiled brat, arrogant, and immature.”
7) Iloilo Representative Niel Tupas, Jr.
Only in his second term as congressman, Tupas has already become a familiar face in television for being the House justice committee’s chairman. This year, the House justice committee has made possible the impeachment of former Ombudsman Merceditas Gutierrez. It has also conducted investigations on the controversial plea bargain agreement of former military comptroller Carlos Garcia and the Office of the Ombudsman, and the land-grabbing case in Quezon City, among others.
Tupas will be heading the prosecution panel for the Senate trial on the impeachment case against Corona.
With only a 0.9 percent chance of winning based on the November Pulse Asia survey, Tupas may have been wise for saying that he has not thought about leaving the House of Representatives yet. (Sunnex)