With Sara's trial ahead, 9 House impeachment prosecutors win reelection

MANILA, Philippines — As more Duterte-aligned candidates secure seats in the Senate race’s “Magic 12,” convicting impeached Vice President Sara Duterte in a Senate trial is expected to become a steeper challenge for House prosecutors and Marcos-aligned senators.

How much more if some members of the 11-person House prosecution panel, many of whom actively led the probe into Duterte’s use of confidential funds, don’t win reelection?

However, based on the latest partial and unofficial results, only two appointed impeachment prosecutors will have to bid goodbye to their seats in Congress.

These are Rep. Raul Angelo “Jil” Bongalon (AKO Bicol Party-list), who was defeated by Tabaco City Mayor Krisel Lagman in Albay’s first district race, and Rep. Loreto Acharon, who lost to a PDP-Laban candidate in the lone district of General Santos City.

Both have already conceded to the top contender on Tuesday, May 13. 

This leaves the prosecution team with nine remaining lawmakers, including some of the most active participants in the congressional investigations who managed to retain their seats. 

In other words, not much is expected to change within the team, especially since the panel has been preparing for pre-trial proceedings as early as February, after more than two-thirds of the 306-member House endorsed a complaint to impeach her.

What happens to prosecutors who lose?

To recall, the appointed prosecutors are responsible for defending the seven allegations, which are listed as articles of impeachment, when Congress resumes and the Senate convenes as an impeachment court in June. 

Even if there are major changes to the composition of the prosecution team, Rep. Ramon Rodrigo Gutierrez (1-Rider Party-list) earlier said this “does not stop the process” of preparing for trial. If necessary, the House can elect a new set of lawmakers to serve as prosecutors.

Panel members also noted that they are working with private prosecutors who are assisting in ensuring they have solid evidence and witnesses to defend why Duterte should be convicted.

RELATED: Sara impeachment: What happens to House prosecutors if trial is held in next Congress?

How lawmaker-prosecutors fared in the polls

Of the nine impeachment prosecutors expected to retain their congressional seats, most either ran unopposed or won by a landslide. Only a few faced close contests.

Here's a breakdown of the results, based on data retrieved from media transparency servers as of 5:48 p.m.

First is Rep. Gerville “Jinky Bitrics” Luistro (Batangas, 2nd District), who has drawn criticism and accusations from the vice president herself, alleging that Luistro failed to pay attorney’s fees to the law firm of her husband, Mans Carpio.

A vocal neophyte lawmaker in the 19th Congress, Luistro stood out for her sharp line of questioning during key investigations — particularly in the Quad Committee’s probe into the war on drugs and the good government panel’s inquiry into the alleged misuse of P612.5 million in confidential funds by the Department of Education (DepEd) and the Office of the Vice President (OVP) during Duterte’s term.

Luistro holds a commanding lead over second-placer Ranie Abu, having secured 105,224 votes with 97.66% of election returns from her district already transmitted.

As one of the impeachment prosecutors, she was assigned to handle the second and third articles of the complaint, which focus on the alleged distribution of cash envelopes and purported ghost expenses.

Another active voice in the legislative inquiries into the Dutertes, Rep. Romeo Acop (Antipolo, 2nd District) retains his seat in the 20th Congress as he runs unopposed, with 131,925 voting for him.

In the good government hearings, Acop was among the lawmakers who flagged irregularities in the acknowledgment receipts for the DepEd’s and OVP’s use of confidential funds, including identical signatures for different recipients, repeated or fictitious names, and similar handwriting across entries.

He has the same assigned impeachment articles as Luistro. 

Like Luistro, Gutierrez was also a neophyte lawmaker in the 19th Congress, representing 1-Rider Party-list, which first entered the House after securing two seats in the 2022 national elections as the second most voted party-list group.

However, the group’s support appears to have waned in the 2025 midterm polls, ranking 28th with just 0.93% of votes cast so far. As the first nominee, Gutierrez is still likely to retain a seat in Congress.

He was also among the lawmakers who helped surface key findings in the probe into Duterte’s use of confidential funds. In one hearing, he flagged anomalies in the disbursement process, discovering how secret funds were not actually released by special disbursing officers as mandated by law.

A staunch critic of the Dutertes, Rep. Joel Chua (Manila, 3rd District) is in a tight race with Aksyon candidate Apple Nieto but currently leads by just around 4,000 votes.

Chua, appointed chair of the good government committee, was instrumental in launching the investigation into Duterte’s use of confidential funds.

He was also among the first lawmakers, alongside the Makabayan bloc, to declare that the committee’s findings — initially flagged during hearings on the 2025 budget — constituted impeachable offenses.

House Minority Leader Marcelino Libanan (4Ps Party-List) appears poised to easily secure his reelection, as his party-list group ranks fourth in votes so far. He is reportedly the lead impeachment prosecutor who is authorized to speak on behalf of the team. 

The 4Ps has garnered 3.50% of the vote, or 1.435 million, with Libanan serving as the first nominee, just as he did in 2022. The group has a high chance of having two seats in the next Congress. 

The second unopposed impeachment prosecutor is Rep. Arnan Panaligan (Oriental Mindoro, 1st District), who secured 191,043 votes. He is a member of Lakas-CMD, the dominant majority party led by House Speaker Martin Romualdez.

Multiple other prosecutors seeking reelection also belong to the same political party.

Rep. Ysabel Maria Zamora (San Juan, Lone District), a lawyer and UP College of Law graduate, is also leading in her district with 44,545 votes — nearly twice as many as her sole challenger, Jana Ejercito. Zamora is also a member of Lakas-CMD. 

In Iloilo City's 3rd District, Rep. Lorenz Defensor secured a landslide victory with 193,404 votes, far ahead of independent candidate Thelma Langusta, who garnered just 2,647.

While not among the most active in the congressional inquiries, Defensor was consistently present and often served as the panel’s spokesperson, providing the media with updates on the impeachment trial preparations whenever possible.

Rep. Jonathan Keith Flores (Bukidnon, 2nd District) was a firm voice during the congressional probe into Vice President Duterte’s confidential fund use. He retains his seat after securing 158,115 votes in the midterm elections.

Flores won by a margin of over 120,000 votes against independent candidate Bernardo Mendoza. He is another member of Lakas-CMD. 

The actual Senate trial is expected to begin by July, with new and returning senators sitting as judges. To convict Duterte, at least two-thirds of the 24-member chamber, or 16 senators, must vote in favor.

A conviction would result in her removal from office and perpetual disqualification from holding public office. However, just nine votes to acquit would be enough to clear her.

As of 5:48 p.m., media transparency servers have processed a total of 97.30% of election returns, which translates to 56.066 million votes.