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 Philippinesportal |
This is a list of women senators of the Philippines. It is a guide to identify the women in the Philippines who have served as senators in the Senate of the Philippines, as distinct from the existing whole list of Philippine senators.
Since 1947, there have been 23 Filipino women senators in Philippine history. In the ongoing 19th Congress, there are 7 incumbent female senators.
The first female senator elected in the Philippines was Geronima Pecson, who reaped the third largest number of votes during the Philippine senatorial elections of 1947. During her senatorial term, Pecson headed the Senate Committee on Education, the Senate Committee on Health and Public Welfare, and the Joint Congressional Committee on Education. [1]
Eva Estrada-Kalaw was the first woman to be re-elected as senator.
Nikki Coseteng was the youngest senator during the 9th and 10th Congress. She was first elected in 1992 and then re-elected in 1995.
Loren Legarda is the first Filipino woman senator to top the Senate race twice in 1998 and 2007. She also became the first Filipino woman to become Majority Floor Leader of the Senate. She was also the youngest senator during the 11th Congress.
Pia Cayetano is the youngest woman elected senator in Philippine history at the age of 38. She was elected in 2004, then re-elected in 2010. She returned to the Senate in 2019.
Loi Ejercito Estrada became the first First Spouse (to Joseph Ejercito Estrada) to be elected in the Senate. She served from 2001 to 2007 after her husband's removal from the presidency in 2001.
Leticia Ramos-Shahani became the first Filipino woman to become President pro tempore of the Senate in 1993.
Santanina Rasul is the first Filipina Muslim senator.
Tecla San Andres Ziga was the first woman in the Philippines to top the bar examinations for law degree graduates. She was elected as a senator in 1963. [2]
Miriam Defensor Santiago was the first Filipino and first Asian from a developing country to be elected as a judge of the International Criminal Court (ICC) on December 12, 2011. [3] She later resigned the post due to suspected ME/CFS, which turned out to be lung cancer. [4] [5]
Gloria Macapagal Arroyo was the first female senator who was elected as Vice President (1998–2001) and later installed to the presidency (2001–2010).
Risa Hontiveros is the Philippines' first socialist woman senator, representing the Akbayan party.
| # | Senator | Full name | Election | Years in service | Congress | Prior political experience | Party | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Magnolia Antonino | Magnolia Rodriguez Welborn-Antonino | 1967 | 1967–1972 | 6th, 7th | None | Nacionalista | |
| 2 | Tessie Aquino-Oreta | Maria Teresa Aquino Aquino-Oreta | 1998 | 1998–2004 | 11th 12th | Representative, Malabon-Navotas's lone district (1987–1998) | LDP | |
| 3 | Helena Z. Benitez | Helena Zoila Tirona Benitez | 1967 | 1967–1972 | 6th, 7th | Nacionalista | ||
| 4 | Nancy Binay | Maria Lourdes Nancy Sombillo Binay Angeles | 2013 2019 | 2013–present | 16th, 17th 18th, 19th | Personal assistant to Vice President Jejomar Binay (2010–2013) | UNA | |
| 5 | Pia Cayetano | Pilar Juliana Schramm Cayetano | 2004 2010 2019 | 2004–2016 2019–present | 13th, 14th 15th, 16th 18th, 19th | Representative, Taguig's Lone district (2016–2019) | Nacionalista | |
| 6 | Nikki Coseteng | Anna Dominique Marquez-Lim Coseteng | 1992 1995 | 1992–2001 | 9th 10th 11th | Representative, Quezon City's 3rd district (1987–1992) | NPC | |
| 7 | Leila de Lima | Leila Norma Eulalia Josefa Magistrado de Lima | 2016 | 2016–2022 | 17th, 18th | Secretary of Justice (2010–2015) | Liberal | |
| 8 | Miriam Defensor-Santiago | Miriam Palma Defensor-Santiago | 1995 2004 2010 | 1995–2001 2004–2016 | 10th 11th 13th 14th 15th 16th | Secretary of Agrarian Reform (1989–1990) | PRP | |
| 9 | Loi Ejercito | Luisa Fernandez Pimentel-Ejercito | 2001 | 2001–2007 | 12th, 13th | First Lady of the Philippines (1998–2001) | Independent (to 2004) | |
| PMP | ||||||||
| 10 | Eva Estrada-Kalaw | Eva Reynada Estrada-Kalaw | 1965 1971 | 1965–1972 | 6th, 7th | Nacionalista | ||
| 11 | Risa Hontiveros | Ana Theresia Navarro Hontiveros-Baraquel | 2016 2022 | 2016–present | 17th, 18th, 19th | Representative, Akbayan (2004–2010) | Akbayan | |
| 12 | Maria Kalaw-Katigbak | Maria Villanueva Kalaw-Katigbak | 1961 | 1961–1967 | 5th, 6th | None | Liberal | |
| 13 | Loren Legarda | Lorna Regina Bautista Legarda | 1998 2007 2013 2022 | 1998–2004, 2007–2019, 2022–present | 11th, 12th, 14th, 15th, 16th, 17th, 19th | Representative, Antique's Lone district (2019–2022) | Lakas (to 2003) | |
| Independent (2004) | ||||||||
| NPC (2nd/3rd/4th terms) | ||||||||
| 14 | Gloria Macapagal Arroyo | Maria Gloria Macaraeg Macapagal Arroyo | 1992 1995 | 1992–1998 | 9th, 10th | Undersecretary of Trade and Industry (1989–1992) | Lakas | |
| 15 | Jamby Madrigal | Maria Ana Consuelo Abad Santos Madrigal-Valade | 2004 | 2004–2010 | 13th 14th | Presidential Adviser for Children's Affairs (1999–2001) | LDP (to 2007) | |
| PDP–Laban (to 2009) | ||||||||
| Independent | ||||||||
| 16 | Pacita Madrigal-Warns | Maria Paz Paterno Madrigal-Warns | 1955 | 1955–1961 | 3rd, 4th | Secretary of Social Welfare and Development (1953–1955) | Nacionalista | |
| 17 | Imee Marcos | Maria Imelda Josefa Remedios Romualdez Marcos | 2019 | 2019–present | 18th, 19th | Representative, Ilocos Norte's 2nd district (1998–2007) Governor of Ilocos Norte (2010–2019) | Nacionalista | |
| 18 | Geronima Pecson | Geronima Palisoc Tomelden Pecson | 1947 | 1947–1953 | 1st, 2nd | Assistant Executive Secretary to President Manuel Roxas | Liberal | |
| 19 | Grace Poe | Mary Grace Natividad Sonora Poe Llamanzares | 2013 2019 | 2013–present | 16th, 17th, 18th, 19th | Chair, Movie and Television Review and Classification Board (2010–2012) | Independent | |
| 20 | Leticia Ramos-Shahani | Leticia Valdez Ramos-Shahani | 1987 1992 | 1987–1998 | 8th, 9th, 10th | Under-Secretary-General of the United Nations for Social Development and Humanitarian Affairs (1981–1986) | LDP (to 1992) | |
| Lakas | ||||||||
| 21 | Nina Rasul | Santanina Centi Tillah Rasul | 1987 1992 | 1987–1995 | 8th, 9th | Commissioner for Muslim and Other Ethnic Minorities (1978–1987) | Liberal (to 1992) | |
| Lakas | ||||||||
| 22 | Cynthia Villar | Cynthia Ampaya Aguilar Villar | 2013 2019 | 2013-present | 16th, 17th, 18th, 19th | Representative, Las Piñas's lone district (2001–2010) | Nacionalista | |
| 23 | Tecla Ziga | Tecla San Andres-Ziga | 1963 | 1963–1969 | 5th, 6th | Secretary of Social Welfare and Development (1962–1963) | Liberal | |
Joseph Ejercito Estrada, also known by the nickname Erap, is a Filipino politician and former actor. He served as the 13th President of the Philippines from 1998 to 2001, the 9th Vice President of the Philippines from 1992 to 1998, and the 26th Mayor of the City of Manila, the country's capital, from 2013 to 2019. In 2001, he became the first Chief Executive in Asia to be formally impeached and resigned from power. At the age of 87, he is currently the oldest living former Philippine President.
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Joseph Victor Gomez Ejercito, also known as JV Ejercito Estrada or simply JV Ejercito, is a Filipino politician and businessman serving as a Senator since 2022 and previously from 2013 to 2019. He had also served as the representative of San Juan from 2010 to 2013 and was the city's mayor from 2001 to 2010. He is a son of former president Joseph Estrada, and a half-brother of Senator Jinggoy Estrada.
Miriam Palma Defensor-Santiago was a Filipino scholar, academic, lawyer, judge, author, and stateswoman who served in all three branches of the Philippine government: judicial, executive, and legislative. Defensor Santiago was named one of The 100 Most Powerful Women in the World in 1997 by The Australian. She was known for being a long-serving Senator of the Republic of the Philippines, an elected judge of the International Criminal Court, and the sole female recipient of the Philippines' highest national honor, the Quezon Service Cross.
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Jinggoy Ejercito Estrada, or simply Jinggoy Estrada, is a Filipino politician and film actor who has been a senator since 2022, and previously from 2004 to 2016. He was the president pro tempore of the Senate from 2007 to 2013, and briefly became Senate President in acting capacity after Juan Ponce Enrile's resignation. Before serving in the Senate, he was the vice mayor (1988–1992) and later mayor (1992–2001) of San Juan when it was still a municipality.
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Francisco "Kit" Sarmiento Tatad is a Filipino journalist and politician best known for having served as Minister of Public Information under President Ferdinand Marcos from 1969 to 1980, and for serving as a Senator of the Philippines from 1992 to 2001.
The 1992 Philippine presidential and vice presidential elections were held on May 11, 1992. This was the first general election held under the 1987 Constitution. An estimated 80,000 candidates ran for 17,000 posts from the presidency down to municipal councilors.
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Victor "Vic" San Andres Ziga was a Filipino politician who served as senator in the 8th Congress. He was an assemblyman for Albay in the Regular Batasang Pambansa prior to getting elected as senator. He also served as Governor of Albay and cabinet minister in the Corazon Aquino administration.
Geronima Josefa Tomelden Pecson was an educator, suffragette, and social worker who became the first woman senator of the Philippines in 1947 and the first woman member of the Executive Board of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) in 1950.
Tecla Ravago San Andres Ziga was a female senator in the Philippines notable for being the first woman in the country to top the bar examination for law-degree graduates.
The 2016 election of members to the Senate of the Philippines was the 32nd election of members to the Senate of the Philippines. It was held on Monday, May 9, 2016, The seats of 12 senators elected in 2010 were filled during this election. The winners in this election joined the winners of the 2013 election to form the 17th Congress of the Philippines. The senators elected in 2013 served until June 30, 2019, while the senators elected in this election would serve up to June 30, 2022.
The 2016 presidential campaign of Miriam Defensor Santiago, a then-incumbent Senator of the Philippines, was announced on October 13, 2015 at a book signing event. Miriam Defensor-Santiago submitted her certificate of candidacy (COC) on October 16, 2015. She was fifth overall in the election and lost to Rodrigo Duterte. Santiago died of lung cancer five months later.
