Senator Jinggoy Estrada has been a fixture in Philippine politics since 1988, when he began his career in public service in San Juan’s local government and later rose to national prominence in 2004. The son of a former President father and former senator, he is both a product of a political establishment and of the enduring “masa” brand of populist politics.
In his early years in the legislature, Senator Estrada was credited with introducing hundreds of bills and sponsoring numerous resolutions. In 2007, he became Senate President Pro Tempore — the chamber’s second-highest post.
His rise, however, was not without controversy. In 2001, he and his father became the first elected officials charged with plunder under the Philippine Anti-Plunder Law. He was released on bail in 2003, and the Supreme Court upheld that decision in 2007, later acquitting him that same year.
Despite this, he won his reelection campaign in 2010, placing second in the senatorial race and again serving as Senate President Pro Tempore and maintained a perfect attendance record during the 15th Congress.
He later faced another plunder case in 2014 – the Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF) scam – over the alleged misuse of ₱10 billion in public funds through fake NGOs, alongside Senators Juan Ponce Enrile and Ramon Revilla Jr. He was detained that year and remained in custody until 2017, when he was granted bail.
Estrada’s 2019 bid for the Senate didn’t make the cut, but he returned in 2022 for a third nonconsecutive term. In 2025, the Sandiganbayan twice denied his motions to dismiss the remaining graft charges linked to the pork barrel scam.
\Adding to this, he now faces new allegations from DPWH Bulacan 1st District Engineer Brice Hernandez, who accused him and Senator Joel Villanueva of receiving kickbacks from flood control projects—part of a broader controversy over billions in public funds.
The question now remains: can Senator Estrada once again weather controversy and hold on to power, or will this latest storm finally end his decades-long political resilience?
