Jamayka Rhose Pascual

Human rights lawyer Chel Diokno is set to enter the House of Representatives after Akbayan Party-list emerged as the frontrunner in the 2025 party-list elections based on partial, and unofficial results as of 11:06 a.m. on May 13.


Data from the Commission on Elections (Comelec) transparency servers showed Akbayan garnering 2,621,208 votes, amounting to 6.94% of the total votes cast.

This is then followed by Duterte Youth (2,128,121), Tingog (1,575,062), and 4Ps (1,285,294) Partylists, respectively.

Akbayan’s victory is a surprise, with the group consistently ranking outside the top 10 in pre-election surveys.

In WR Numero’s April 2025 non-commissioned poll, Akbayan ranked 21st, while Pulse Asia and SWS placed their support below 1%.

On election night, Akbayan quickly rose through the ranks, drawing widespread attention online.

Diokno, as Akbayan’s first nominee, expressed overwhelming gratitude in a Facebook post, describing the results as a shared victory born out of trust, conviction, and collective action.

“Hindi ko maipaliwanag ang saya at pasasalamat na nararamdaman ko ngayon. Over 2.2 million votes and counting — isang tagumpay na bunga ng inyong tiwala, ng ating paninindigan, at ng sama-samang pagkilos para sa isang makatao at makatarungang lipunan,” he wrote.

Diokno also acknowledged the leadership of Senator Risa Hontiveros, the party-list’s campaign figurehead, and the solidarity of other liberal leaders, including Senators Bam Aquino and Kiko Pangilinan, ML Party-list nominee Leila de Lima, and Naga Mayor-elect Leni Robredo.

“Ngayon, may mas malakas tayong boses sa Kongreso — at gagamitin natin ito para sa kapakanan ng mga nasa laylayan, at para ipaglaban ang ating soberanya at demokrasya,” he expressed.

Akbayan is now on track to secure the maximum three seats allotted for a party-list group, sending Diokno, along with former National Youth Commission chair Perci Cendaña, and women’s rights advocate Dadah Kiram Ismula to the Congress.

This marks Diokno’s first electoral win, following unsuccessful Senate bids in 2019 and 2022.

“Ito ang simula ng panibagong yugto. At sa laban na ito, magka-akbay tayo,” Diokno stated.