JV blames brother Jinggoy for reelection loss
MANILA, Philippines — Running simultaneously with his half brother Jinggoy Estrada slimmed his chances of securing another term in the Senate, outgoing Sen. JV Ejercito said Friday.
JV placed 13th in the senatorial race with more than 14.3 million votes while his brother Jinggoy ranked 15th with 11.3 million votes.
The outgoing senator said that "poor family decision" led to his loss in the 2019 midterm elections.
"Had he (Jinggoy) not run, I would have secured my reelection bid," JV told ANC's "Headstart" Friday morning.
JV also admitted that chances of reconciliation with his brother are harder now after the results in the previous elections.
"I love this job and I guess I have performed quite decently in the past six years," JV said, adding that he would have wanted to finish his second term and retire from politics.
One of the highlights of JV's stint in the Senate was passing the Universal Health Care Law.
JV noted that he was not in favor of running together with Estrada from the start.
"I was not in favor of us running simultaneously. In fact, I left the party because I was not in agreement for both of us running at the same time because I knew that this was gonna happen," JV said.
For the 2019 polls, JV ran under the Nationalist People's Coalition while Jinggoy ran under their father's political party Pwersa ng Masang Pilipino. Both brothers, however, have been backed by Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte's Hugpong ng Pagbabago.
JV also blamed his brother Jinggoy for the defeat of Janella Estrada in the San Juan City mayoralty race. Janella, daughter of Jinggoy, lost to Francis Zamora.
"We were just fighting too many battles and probably this is the main reason why the so-called Estrada dynasty collapsed," JV said.
The outgoing senator denied Jinggoy's claim that he and his mother Guia Gomez supported Zamora instead of Janella.
"I was not sure of my election because he (Jinggoy) was also running. Of course, my mother and I was very concerned and I am his son so instead of us being able to focus and help Janella my mother and I were concerned about my candidacy," the senator said.
Despite his failed reelection bid, which he deemed as a "heartbreak," JV said the outpouring of support "softened the blow."
"I was really overwhelmed that I may not have won the counting but I probably have won the hearts of the Filipino people and that really made it easier for me to cope up with the situation," he said. — Patricia Lourdes Viray
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