Sen. Mark Villar has joined the Senate majority, Sen. Migz Zubiri confirmed Thursday, Oct. 8. The majority now has 14 senators, matching the number of votes currently required to convict Vice President Sara Duterte in her impeachment trial, while the minority has been reduced to 10 members.
The realignment carries immediate significance for Duterte’s impeachment trial. Under the Senate Impeachment Court’s current voting formula, 14 votes would be enough to convict if only 20 senator-judges are deemed eligible to participate. The majority now holds exactly 14 seats, although membership in a bloc does not determine how individual senators will vote.
Villar has also been elected chairperson of the Senate Committee on Public Works, replacing Sen. Tito Sotto. He was also elected to the Commission on Appointments, taking the seat previously held by Zubiri.
On Sept. 23, the Impeachment Court voted 13-1 to overturn the fixed 16-vote requirement for conviction. It ruled that the constitutional two-thirds threshold should be based on senators who are legally and factually capable of participating when the judgment is rendered. Four senator-judges—Sens. Rodante Marcoleta, Jinggoy Estrada, Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa and Loren Legarda—are currently unable to participate, leaving a 20-member voting base and a 14-vote threshold.
Villar voted with 12 majority members at the time. Six minority senator-judges did not participate, including his sister, Sen. Camille Villar. Impeachment Court Presiding Officer Francis “Chiz” Escudero cast the lone dissenting vote.
The 10 remaining minority members are Sens. Alan Peter Cayetano, Pia Cayetano, Camille Villar, Imee Marcos, Bong Go, Robin Padilla, Loren Legarda, Jinggoy Estrada, Rodante Marcoleta and Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa. Legarda, Estrada, Marcoleta and dela Rosa have been unable to participate in the trial because of medical or legal circumstances.
Villar’s move gives the majority enough seats to meet the current mathematical threshold on its own, provided all 14 senators vote to convict. The verdict, however, will ultimately depend on the decisions of individual senator-judges and the final number of senators eligible to vote.
