SENATOR OF THE

PHILIPPINES
SENATOR KOKO PIMENTEL
 Koko Pimentel

• Aquilino Martin de la Llana Pimentel III (born January 20, 1964),[1] commonly

known as Koko Pimentel, is a Filipino politician and lawyer serving as the 
Senate Minority Leader since 2022. He has been a Senator since 2011 and
previously served as the Senate President of the Philippines from 2016 to 2018.[2][3]
 He is also the national chairman of Partido Demokratiko Pilipino–Lakas ng Bayan
(PDP–Laban). As the eldest son and third child of the former Senate President 
Aquilino Pimentel Jr., he is the first child of a previous Senate president to hold the
office.[4] He was sworn in on August 12, 2011, and was proclaimed as the 12th
winning senator in the 2007 election.[5] Pimentel was one of the high-ranking public
officials who drew flak for breaching the COVID-19 quarantine protocols.
 Early life and education

• Aquilino Martin de la Llana Pimentel III was born on January 20, 1964,
in Cagayan de Oro, Philippines. His parents are Aquilino Pimentel, Jr.
 and Lourdes de la Llana-Pimentel. His father was a lawyer and dean
 of law at Xavier University at the time of his birth. The elder Pimentel
eventually became a senator.
• Pimentel earned his Bachelor of Science degree in Mathematics from 
Ateneo de Manila University and his Bachelor of Laws from 
University of the Philippines College of Law. He topped the 1990 
Philippine Bar Examinations with a score of 89.85 percent.
 Early career

• Pimentel began working as a lawyer in 1990, and was commissioner

(representing Mindanao) on the National Youth Commission from 1995 to
1998. He was a professor for the University of the East College of Law
 from 2007 to 2010 and also for the MBA-JD Program of the 
Ramon V. del Rosario College of Business and 
Far Eastern University Institute of Law from 2006 until his election to the
senate in August 2011.[7] He was conferred Doctor of Humanities honoris
causa by the Polytechnic University of the Philippines on May 18, 2012
 Political career

• 2001 election
• Pimentel ran for Cagayan de Oro city mayor in the 2001 elections but lost to 
Vicente Emano.
• 2007 election
• Running in only his second race in the May 14, 2007 senatorial elections,
Pimentel was narrowly defeated by Bukidnon Congressman Miguel Zubiri for
the 12th and last slot in the Philippine Senate. The narrow margin of 18,372
votes was controversial, particularly the votes from the southern Philippine
province of Maguindanao, where Pimentel had lost heavily to Zubiri.
 Electoral protest

• In Philippine senatorial elections, the twelve candidates with the highest number of votes
nationwide are elected. In the 2007 elections, Pimentel (Genuine Opposition) and Juan Miguel
Zubiri (TEAM Unity) contested the 12th seat.[13][14]
• In the final tally for the 2007 senatorial elections by the Commission on Elections (COMELEC),
Zubiri narrowly defeated Pimentel for the 12th and last seat in the Senate. Zubiri had a total of
11,005,866 votes against Pimentel's 10,984,347 votes.[13] On July 14, 2007, Zubiri was proclaimed
as the 12th winning senator.[14]
• Claiming fraudulent votes in 22 municipalities of Maguindanao, 7 in Lanao del Norte, 3 in Shariff
Kabunsuan, 2 in Basilan, 2 in Sultan Kudarat, 4 in Lanao del Sur, and 4 in Sulu, Pimentel
petitioned the Supreme Court to issue a restraining order against the proclamation of Zubiri. With
the vote tied at 7–7, the Supreme Court dismissed Pimentel's petition. But then-Chief Justice 
Reynato Puno was among the seven justices who favored Pimentel's petition.
• On July 14, 2007, Pimentel filed an electoral protest to the Senate Electoral Tribunal (SET).
After finding grounds for a recount, the SET proceeded with the protest.
• In July 2011, former Maguindanao election supervisor Lintang Bedol and suspended 
Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao governor Zaldy Ampatuan revealed that there was
massive election fraud during the 2007 election.
• On August 11, 2011, the Senate Electoral Tribunal released the final tally: Pimentel got
10,898,786 votes while Zubiri got 10,640,620. Prior to this, on August 3, 2011, Zubiri resigned
from the Senate; however, he reiterated that he was not involved in the 2007 electoral fraud.[20]
• On August 11, 2011, Pimentel was proclaimed by the Senate Electoral Tribunal as the rightful
winner of the 12th senate seat. On August 12, Pimentel took his oath of office before his
supporters in Mati, Davao Oriental, where he received a high number of votes
 2013 election

• Pimentel was included in the United Nationalist Alliance (UNA)

coalition's shortlist of senatorial candidates for the 2013 election.
However, citing UNA's senatorial slate now having more than twelve
members and the inclusion of his longtime political rival, 
Juan Miguel Zubiri, Pimentel officially declined his spot in the UNA
coalition on June 28, 2012. Instead, Pimentel ran under the Team
PNoy coalition, composed mostly of supporters of then-President 
Benigno Aquino III. Pimentel was elected to the Senate of the
Philippines, placing eighth with 14,725,114 votes.
 Senate President (2016–2018)

• On July 25, 2016, the opening day of the 17th Congress of the Philippines, Pimentel
was elected as Senate President with 20 out of 23 senators voting in his favor. He,
along with his father Aquilino Pimentel Jr., is the only father-and-son tandem being
elected as Senate President in Philippine history; the elder Pimentel served as Senate
President from 2000 to 2001.
• In November 2016, Pimentel told Palace Communications Secretary Martin Andanar,
"Review your history.", after Andanar referred to anti-Marcos protesters who opposed
the hero's burial of the late dictator as "temperamental brats". Pimentel called the
protestors "principled", adding that "they come from the poorest sectors of society and
therefore, cannot be labeled as "brats. They can never be called brats. These are
actually principled positions. So Martin Andanar should review his history,"
• In May 2017, Pimentel led 15 senators who supported Proclamation No. 216
 which placed the whole of Mindanao under Martial Law. Pimentel also led 12
senators who voted against Resolution 390 calling on Congress to convene a
joint session to tackle the declaration of martial law in Mindanao. This opinion
was contradicted by Pimentel's father and former Senate President, Nene
Pimentel, who posited, "Within 48 hours from declaration of martial law,
President [Rodrigo] Duterte is obligated to submit his report in writing or in
person before the Senate and the House in joint session".
• Pimentel resigned on May 21, 2018, in order to focus on his reelection bid in the 
2019 and was succeeded by Majority Leader Tito Sotto.