On June 17, Senator Sherwin Gatchalian officially replaced Sen. Alan Peter Cayetano as Senate President during a special session of Congress called by President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr., securing the support of 13 senators. Sen. Vicente “Tito” Sotto III was elected Senate President Pro Tempore in the same session.
The leadership dispute began on May 11, when 13 senators voted to remove Sotto as Senate President and elect Cayetano. On the same day, the change coincided with the House of Representatives' impeachment proceedings against Vice President Sara Duterte, prompting speculation that the move was intended to influence the Senate's handling of the trial, an allegation Cayetano denied.
Tensions intensified as disagreements emerged over Senate priorities and the impending impeachment trial. The majority bloc's numbers weakened after Sen. Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa became unavailable due to International Criminal Court (ICC) proceedings and Sen. Jinggoy Estrada was placed under custody on June 1 for his plunder and graft cases, reducing the number of active senators from 24 to 22.
Unable to secure the constitutionally required 13 votes to elect a Senate President on June 3, the senators who were present in the session instead elected Gatchalian as Senate President Pro Tempore, allowing him to preside over the chamber temporarily.
On June 17, the impasse ended after Sen. Joel Villanueva left the Cayetano bloc, giving the previous minority bloc the 13 votes needed to elect a new Senate President. Sens. Panfilo Lacson, Miguel Zubiri, and JV Ejercito denied that any concessions had been offered to Villanueva, saying his decision stemmed from his commitment to the Senate as an institution.
In an interview with ABS-CBN, Zubiri shared that Gatchalian is “the leader that the Senate needs,” stating, "I know he'll be able to rise above the fray and lead us back to our principal function, which is to attend to the work of legislation."
On the other hand, Sen. Erwin Tulfo shared that Ejercito talked to Villanueva on Tuesday evening, the 13th member of the current majority bloc.
When asked if there was an offer to Villanueva for his transfer, Tulfo replied, "Wala naman. Anong i-offer namin? Siguro, committee. I don't know kung anong committee yun."
Villanueva is facing charges over his alleged involvement in the flood control corruption scandal.
With the top positions filled, the Senate proceeded to elect committee chairmanships and memberships. The Commission on Appointments was reconstituted with Sens. Lacson, Ejercito, Sotto, Zubiri, Villanueva, and Raffy Tulfo representing the Senate contingent, andGatchalian serving as chairperson. Sens. Bam Aquino, Kiko Pangilinan, Lito Lapid, and Francis “Chiz” Escudero were elected to the Senate Electoral Tribunal.
Meanwhile, Lacson declined the chairmanship of the Blue Ribbon Committee, saying he was “tired of losing old friends and creating new enemies.”
Gatchalian's election marked the fourth Senate leadership change in the 20th Congress, making it only the third time in Philippine history that a single congressional term has had four Senate Presidents.
The latest leadership transition ended weeks of political deadlock and came at a crucial time as the Senate prepares to tackle key legislative measures and the impeachment proceedings against Vice President Duterte.
