San Juan Representative Joseph Victor Ejercito. INQUIRER file photo
MANILA, Philippines – What’s in a name? For San Juan City Representative Joseph Victor “JV” Ejercito, it means a lot.
This is why come midterm elections in 2013, JV will drop Ejercito and campaign as JV Estrada, telling reporters that the “Estrada factor” wold play a big role in his bid for senator.
Ejercito said he arrived at the decision after seeing the results of the latest Pulse Asia and Social Weather Stations surveys, showing him improving from eighth to fourth place in the Magic 12.
In a recent Pulse survey, Ejercito tied for the third slot with Senator Alan Peter Cayetano. Senators Loren Legarda and Francis “Chiz” Escudero took the top two slots.
“I’d attribute the jump [in the surveys] to the Estrada factor. Mukhang malaki ang effect ng name recall [It looks like the name recall has big effect],” he said.
He said that although he had good ratings in Metro Manila as Ejercito, the surname Estrada, his father’s screen name, gave him better chances in Visayas and Mindanao. “My father insisted that I use the name Estrada.”
The congressman said he would have kept his original surname had the surveys conducted in August and September not shown improvements in his rating.
In the SWS survey, for instance, Ejercito ranked fourth, behind Senators Francis Escudero (1st), Loren Legarda (2nd), and Alan Peter Cayetano (3rd).
Four other prospective UNA candidates were in the Magic 12: Representative Jack Enrile (5th), Senator Gregorio Honasan (6th), former Rep. Juan Miguel Zubiri (9th), and Vice President Jejomar Binay’s daughter Nancy (12th).
An Ejercito victory would mean that there would be two Estrada sons working in the same chamber, at least for the next three years. Sen. Jose “Jinggoy” Estrada, the Senate president pro tempore, was reelected in 2010 and will serve until 2016.
Asked how he would be able to work with his half-brother, with whom he is known to have a rivalry, Ejercito said: “The relationship is much better now than it was before…. We’ve both matured already, so just wait. That will be one of the things to watch.”