Political career

House of Representatives

Hontiveros first entered politics as the third nominee of Akbayan Party-list in the 2004 national
elections. She was one of the prominent opposition figures of the Gloria Macapagal Arroyo
administration, especially during the height of the Hello Garci controversy of 2005.[10] In the
International Women's Day of 2006, she was arrested and brought to Camp Caringal in Quezon City
without warrant despite the peaceful nature of the assembly marking the global event.[11]

Senate bids

Hontiveros displaying Corazon Aquino's iconic laban (fight) hand symbol after joining the Liberal Party in
their campaign in the 2010 elections.

Running under the ticket of then-senator Benigno Aquino III, Hontiveros lost in the 2010 national
elections.[12]

Running under the Team PNoy ticket, Hontiveros ran again for a Senate seat in the 2013 midterm
election. However, she lost for the second time, placing 17th in the Senate race. Her campaign slogan
was Paglalaban ka, aalagaan ka, which reflected the gains from the enactment of the Reproductive
Health Law and the continuing struggle for universal health care and good governance. In the aftermath,
Hontiveros acknowledged Senator Osmena's observation of her mixed messages in the campaign may
have been the reason for her loss.[13]

In December 2014, Hontiveros was inducted as a trustee of the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation
board.[14]

Senate

Hontiveros makes her first privilege speech before the Senate. 2016

Hontiveros ran again for Senator and won in the 2016 election under the Koalisyon ng Daang Matuwid
of President Benigno Aquino III. Landing ninth place, she was proclaimed a senator-elect by the
Philippine Commission on Elections, sitting en banc as National Board of Canvassers, on May 19, 2016.
[2]
In November 2016, Hontiveros, along with hundreds of progressive groups, protested the sudden burial
of the late dictator Ferdinand Marcos in the Libingan ng mga Bayani.[15]

Hontiveros authored Senate Bill No. 1345, or the Philippine Mental Health Bill, which aims to create a
mental health law for the Philippines by integrating mental health care services and programs into the
nation's public health system and ensuring its availability in all hospitals nationwide. The bill was filed on
February 17, 2017, and passed the Senate on May 2.[16]

A staunch activist against the re-imposition of the death penalty, Hontiveros, along with key senators,
announced in February 2017 that they will block any attempt to legislate such a law after the lower
house of congress passed their version of the bill.[17] On August 16, the Shooting of Kian delos Santos
occurred. Hontiveros, a consistent figure against the deadly Philippine Drug War which has killed at least
20,000 as claimed by Senator Antonio Trillanes[18] She was one of the main initiators of a Senate
investigation against the police personnel that killed Delos Santos. She also took legal custody of the
witnesses of the case, with proper written consent from the minor and their parents, after fears of
police retaliation against the witness surfaced.[19]

Hontiveros was principal author and sponsor of Republic Act No. 10932, or the "Act strengthening the
Anti-Hospital Deposit Law", which increases the penalties for hospitals that demand deposits or advance
payments before administering basic emergency services.[20][21][22]

In September 2017, Hontiveros caught justice secretary Vitaliano Aguirre II drafting fabricated charges
against her through text messages during a hearing on the deaths of minors caused by the Philippine
Drug War. Aguirre's text messages instructed former Negros Oriental representative Jacinto Paras, a
member of controversial group VACC, to 'expedite' cases against Hontiveros, a sitting senator. The same
tactic was used by Aguirre against Senator Leila de Lima, which led to de Lima's arrest a few months
past. The revelation was protested nationwide as instead of focusing on the murder case, President
Rodrigo Duterte's justice secretary was focusing on how to imprison Hontiveros.[23][24] Despite being
caught and the evidences presented in halls of Senate, Aguirre still filed cases against Hontiveros in
October.[23][24] On September 13, 2017, Hontiveros, along with key senators, vowed to convince their
House counterparts to restore the proposed P678-million budget of the Philippine Commission on
Human Rights, which criticized Duterte's deadly drug war, for 2018. The House downgraded the
commission's budget to only 1,000 pesos. The budget was eventually restored after major appeals from
the public and the Senate.[25]