First Transgender Politician Rep Geraldine Roman Might Run for Senator in 2019 Under PDP-Laban, CBCP Reacts

Bataan Representative Geraldine Roman, the first ever transgender politician in the Philippines, is very much likely to run for senator in the 2019 midterm elections. She is one of the six potential senatorial candidates of the ruling party, PDP-Laban, as announced by Senate President Aquilino "Koko" Pimentel III on Friday, October 6.



"If we cannot come up with 12, then we are open to entering into coalition agreements with other parties. This is a 'developing/evolving' matter hence not final not official; just my personal preferences,” Pimentel told reporters, who also the current president of PDP-Laban, and the son of Aquilino “Nene” Pimentel, a former senate president (2000-2001).

Roman, 46, underwent sex reassignment surgery in New York City when she was only 26, and changed her name, as well as her gender. She was the chairperson of Ladlad Party-list, which was supposed to represent the marginalized sector of LGBT community. However, the Commission on Elections (Comelec) did not recognize for two elections.

Rep. Geraldine Roman started in politics in the 2016 elections under the Liberal Party (LP), and ran to replace her mother, Herminia Roman, as the Representative of the 1st District of Bataan. Geraldine’s father, Antonino Pascual Roman, Jr., who passed away in 2014, also served the same position from 1998 to 2007, and was replaced by her mother.

Last May 10, Rep. Roman was one of the LP members who decided to transfer to PDP-Laban. She also supports President Rodrigo Duterte’s campaign to change the government to federalism. She authored a bill seeking to establish a Cancer Treatment Center in every region, and voted to approve a bill reinstate the death penalty.

Being a neophyte lawmaker, Rep. Roman is the co-author of House Bill Number 4982, also known as the SOGIE (Sexual Orientation or Gender Identity or Expression) Equality Bill, which the House has unanimously approved on its third and final reading last September 20. She is also set to file a same-sex civil union bill sometime soon.



However, the Catholic Bishops' Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) appears to be not supporting transgender politicians. In its statement on Sunday, the national Episcopal Conference reminded the faithful not to support moral corruption. And although the CBCP is against discrimination of homosexuals, it is not in favor of LGBT as public servants.

Contributed by Renato Pasayao