MANILA — The Senate majority bloc has initially agreed to elect Sen. Francis “Chiz” Escudero as presiding officer in the upcoming impeachment trial of Vice President Sara Duterte, Sen. Panfilo Lacson said.

In a report, it said that in a briefing with reporters on the sidelines of the Senate’s special session, Lacson said there is a consensus among majority senators to support Escudero for the role once the chamber convenes as an impeachment court.

“As per our consensus as of this morning, we will elect Senator Chiz Escudero if we convene again as impeachment court to be the presiding officer,” Lacson said.

The majority bloc recently installed Sen. Sherwin Gatchalian as Senate President during the June 17 session, with the group also considering possible leadership arrangements for the impeachment proceedings.

Lacson said Escudero was chosen for consideration due to his legal background and prior experience handling impeachment proceedings, noting his role as presiding officer in Duterte’s 2025 impeachment case.

He added, however, that the decision is not yet final and may still change.

Majority senator Sen. Risa Hontiveros said no formal decision has been made, despite Lacson’s statement of a consensus.

“Everything will be decided on the [Senate] impeachment court. We can’t speak of it here,” Hontiveros said in mixed English and Tagalog.

Newly installed Senate President Sherwin Gatchalian earlier said either Escudero or Sen. Kiko Pangilinan was being considered for the post, citing both lawmakers’ legal backgrounds.

Under revised Senate impeachment rules, the Senate president is no longer automatically the presiding officer. Instead, the chamber may elect any senator through a majority vote.

The majority bloc’s proposal aligns with earlier suggestions from Sen. Tito Sotto to assign the impeachment court leadership to a lawyer-senator.

Escudero previously served as presiding officer in the Senate’s 2025 impeachment proceedings, which drew criticism after the chamber returned the Articles of Impeachment to the House rather than proceeding to trial, amid accusations of delay.

He is also facing a plunder complaint before the Office of the Ombudsman over alleged kickbacks from flood control projects, which he has denied.

The impeachment trial of Vice President Duterte is scheduled to begin on July 6, with a pretrial conference set for June 18 involving House prosecutors and the vice president’s defense team. Duterte faces allegations of graft and corruption, unexplained wealth, bribery, and grave threats.