Roxas, Sereno, Dantes among names eyed for opposition Senate slate for 2019

The Liberal Party (LP)-led opposition slate has a long list of possible candidates for the 2019 Senate polls led by former Presidential candidate Manuel "Mar" Roxas, former Chief Justice Ma. Lourdes Sereno, actor Jose Sixto "Dingdong" Dantes, among others.

Multiple sources from the LP-led coalition, who refused to be named due to lack of authority to speak on the matter, revealed that the list also include Magdalo Rep. Gary Alejano, Sen. Paolo Benigno "Bam" Aquino IV, former Chief Justice Hilario Davide, Jr., human right lawyer Chel Diokno, former Akbayan party-list Rep. Ibarra Gutierrez, Marawi-based aid worker Samira Gutoc, former Solicitor General Florin Hilbay, actress Agot Isidro, former Presidential spokesperson Edwin Lacierda, lawyer Romulo Macalintal, former Deputy Speaker Lorenzo Tañada 3rd, former Palace Undersecretary Manolo Quezon 3rd, former Social Welfare and Development Chief Corazon Soliman, as well as singer/activist Leah Navarro and Jim Paredes.

Of the 18, only three are members of the LP: Roxas, Tañada, and Aquino. The rest of those in the slate are either former officials of the previous administration or staunch supporters of former president Benigno Aquino III.

"The final decision is with the party leaders," one of the coalition sources said.

LP is chaired by Vice President Maria Leonor "Leni" Robredo.

Only 12 will make it to the final cut.

“The list will be finalized this month,” the source added.

Candidacy filings for the May 2019 elections was scheduled for the first week of October.

Gutierrez, who also serves as Vice President Robredo's spokesperson, declined to comment on the slate's chances.

“That list is hardly official much less final. Mahirap mag comment,” he explained.

Of the 18, only Sen. Bam Aquino was the only candidate that polled consistently within the top 12 - the winners' circle - in both Social Weather Stations and Pulse Asia surveys.

Roxas was ranked 14th to 21st in a July Pulse Asia survey, while Isidro ranked 23rd to 32nd. Tañada, the LP's External Vice President, ranked 32nd to 38.

Lacierda shared Gutierrez's view that it was too early to predict success, and to be alarmed over poll results with eight months to go before the elections.

“Malayo pa ang campaign season. But the political and economic conditions, whether good or bad, whether for government or opposition, will find relevance and will be a concern for everyone come campaign season,” Lacierda said in a separate message to GMA News Online. — JST/DVM, GMA News