Ana Theresia "Risa" Navarro Hontiveros Baraquel (; born February 24, 1966) is a Filipino politician who has served as a senator of the Philippines since 2016. A member of the progressive Akbayan party, she previously served as its party-list representative from 2004 to 2010.
Born to a prominent family in the Philippines, Hontiveros studied social sciences at the Ateneo de Manila University, graduating cum laude in 1987. She worked as a journalist for IBC and GMA Network and became involved in the formation of Akbayan in 1998. As a former secretary-general of the Coalition for Peace, her work in peace negotiations earned her a nomination for the 2005 Nobel Peace Prize.
After being elected to the House of Representatives in 2004, she emerged as a major opposition figure to the administration of Gloria Macapagal Arroyo. During her tenure as a representative, she advocated for the passage of the SOGIE Equality Bill, the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Law, the Cheaper and Quality Medicines Law, and the Reproductive Health Law.
Hontiveros ran for the Senate twice—in 2010 and 2013—before being elected in 2016, becoming the country's first socialist woman senator. As a senator, she authored and led the passage of the Mental Health Act, the Bangsamoro Organic Law, the Expanded Maternity Leave Law, the Anti-POGO Law, the Safe Streets and Public Spaces Act, the Solo Parents Act, the Foundling Protection Law, and the Philippine Maritime Zones Act, among many other laws. During her first term, she was a vocal critic of the administration of Rodrigo Duterte and condemned his war on drugs. At the same time, she became a target of misinformation surrounding her tenure as a PhilHealth trustee, which was later debunked by fact-checkers.
Hontiveros was reelected in 2022, becoming the only opposition senator to retain her seat, and becoming the de facto leader of the opposition as recognized by former vice president Leni Robredo. In 2025, she managed the successful senatorial bids of Bam Aquino and Kiko Pangilinan. Throughout her political career, Hontiveros has launched numerous investigations that have exposed anomalies and corruption in various sectors, including government, where high-ranking officials have successfully been arrested. Among the investigations she led included those that probed the POGO controversy, the KOJC scandal, the Pharmally scandal, and the Philippine drug war, among others.
Early life and career Ana Theresia Navarro Hontiveros was born on February 24, 1966, in Manila, to Ramon Pardo Hontiveros, a Panay Visayan lawyer, and Chit Navarro Hontiveros, a Caviteño-Mindoreño Tagalog executive secretary. Raised in Merville, Parañaque, she grew up in a household that encouraged outspoken yet respectful dialogue.
Hontiveros belongs to prominent Filipino families. Her paternal lineage includes Jose Hontiveros, a former senator and associate justice of the Supreme Court of the Philippines, while her aunts and uncles include National Artists Daisy Hontiveros Avellana and Lamberto V. Avellana, Jesuit priest and liturgical music pioneer Eduardo Hontiveros, and Philippine Animal Welfare Society founder Nita Hontiveros-Lichauco. Her siblings include journalists Pia Hontiveros and sustainability executive Ginggay Hontiveros-Malvar, while her extended family includes notable figures such as singer Leah Navarro, Cebu City vice mayor Dondon Hontiveros, and musician Barbie Almalbis.
She attended St. Scholastica's College, where she joined the glee club and participated in musical theater, including Repertory Philippines's production of the The Sound of Music. Encouraged by her mother, she became socially aware at a young age, participating in the 1978 noise barrage for democracy when she was 12 years old, and attending a Nuclear Free Philippines Coalition Symposium during her high school sophomore year, where she organized a campaign against the Bataan Nuclear Power Plant.
In college at the Ateneo de Manila University, Hontiveros became active in the student council, advocating for peace and justice for marginalized communities, and also becoming one of five Filipino students who were accepted for the 12th JAL scholarship program at the Sophia University in Japan. She was also credited as the original recording artist of the song Tanging Yaman, which was composed by her classmate Fr. Manoling Francisco, SJ, in 1986. While studying at Ateneo, she worked as a journalist and became pen pals with Philippine Military Academy cadet Francisco Baraquel Jr., who later became her husband. Hontiveros graduated cum laude with a Bachelor of Arts degree in social sciences in 1987.
After graduation, Hontiveros pursued careers in journalism and teaching. She worked for networks IBC and GMA Network, co-anchoring programs including the Firing Line and Headline Trese, for which she was awarded the 1994 Kapisanan ng mga Brodkaster ng Pilipinas Golden Dove Awards for Best Female Newscaster. In the mid-nineties, she helped form the progressive political party Akbayan, and was asked to represent it in Congress, but she begged off the proposals twice due to family reasons. Hontiveros also served as the secretary-general of the Coalition for Peace, advocating for peace zones and leading discussions on socio-economic reforms in peace talks with the National Democratic Front. For her work, she received the Ten Outstanding Young Men (TOYM) Award for Peace and Advocacy in 2001 and was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize in 2005. Before the 2004 elections, her peers again convinced Hontiveros to represent Akbayan, which she accepted.
House of Representatives (2004–2010) Hontiveros first entered politics as the third nominee of the Akbayan party-list in the 2004 national elections. She was one of the prominent opposition figures during the Gloria Macapagal Arroyo administration, especially throughout the height of the Hello Garci controversy, where Arroyo allegedly rigged the recent presidential election to her favor, as recorded in a phone call. Arroyo tasked the police and military forces to undertake activities described by international groups as abuse of authority. In October 2005, Hontiveros filed a case with the aim of ending the series of police brutalities conducted by Arroyo's government.
During International Women's Day in 2006, she was arrested and brought to Camp Karingal in Quezon City without a warrant by civilian-clothed government agents of President Gloria Arroyo. Various lawmakers, including Senator Miriam Defensor-Santiago, have called the arrest illegal. Hontiveros was later released after public outrage and criticisms against the Arroyo administration. Hontiveros afterwards returned to work as an opposition figure and House lawmaker and filed criminal raps, stating that the arrest was "veritable proof [that] the President is bent on violating civil liberties to silence those who simply wish to have the truth exposed."
In 2007, Hontiveros urged the Ombudsman to inhibit during the NBN–ZTE deal corruption scandal case. The case exposed an overpriced contract signed by the Arroyo government with China's ZTE Corporation, amounting to at least $130 million in kickbacks. Arroyo's husband, Jose Miguel Arroyo, and Commission on Elections chair Benjamin Abalos were also found to have been involved in bribery. Hontiveros, as House deputy minority leader, criticized the government and called for the controversial deal to be cancelled. Because of the revelations, Arroyo later scrapped the deal. On the same year, Hontiveros called on the House leadership to launch an investigation on the alleged distribution of 'cash gifts' given by the Arroyo government to congressmen. The public funds were reportedly used as Arroyo's bargain to block impeachment.
In 2008, Hontiveros exposed that under the Arroyo government's 18 "agribusiness" deals with China in 2007, at least one million hectares of Philippine forest land territories would be leased to China for 50 years, an unprecedented violation of the Constitution and the country's national integrity. Hontiveros also criticized President Arroyo's Joint Marine Seismic Undertaking (JMSU) agreement, wherein 148,886 square kilometers of Philippine maritime territory would be interfered and exploited by China. Due to the revelations, the Chinese "agribusiness" deals were later cancelled while the JMSU was not renewed by the government, and later declared as void and unconstitutional by the Supreme Court of the Philippines.
As Akbayan representative in the House, Hontiveros has authored numerous laws, including the Right to Labor Self-Organization Law which expanded the rights of Filipino workers to self-organize, the Cheaper and Quality Medicines Law which drastically lowered the cost of medicines in the country, and the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program Extension with Reforms (CARPER) Law which gave thousands of poor Filipino farmers their own agricultural lands, among many others. She also participated in the early pride marches calling for the passage of the anti-discrimination bill (later called the SOGIE Equality Bill). In June 2009, Hontiveros marched with the LGBTQ community to denounce the Commission on Election's decision to not accredit Ladlad, the world's first LGBT partylist.
In November 2009, the Maguindanao massacre occurred, where 58 people (including 34 journalists) were killed in Ampatuan, Maguindanao del Sur. Hontiveros called for justice for the victims, calling the massacre 'an indictment of Arroyo's coddling of impunity for her allies'. Hontiveros also criticized the prime suspect, former governor Andal Ampatuan Jr., who petitioned to post bail. Five suspects were convicted ten years later, with Hontiveros stating that although the masterminds were jailed, the quest for justice continues as several suspects remain at large and attacks on journalists continue to occur.
Hontiveros also began the first ever national House debates on the Reproductive Health Law (RH Law) which was primarily authored by her ally Edcel Lagman in the House of Representatives. Although the proposal did not pass into law due to conservative politicians, the debates ignited a national awareness on the need for such a law.
Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (2014–2015) In November 2014, Hontiveros was inducted as a trustee of the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth) board, where she served until October 2015. As a trustee, she pushed for expanded medical benefits and coverage, especially for indigents and senior citizens. Later in 2018, when Hontiveros criticized President Duterte's regime and Chinese foreign policy, various fake news were circulated against Hontiveros about her alleged issues in PhilHealth. The allegations have since been fact-checked as false. Many of the bot accounts spreading the fake news were confirmed as originating from China. Duterte-allied vloggers also proliferated the fake news. Hontiveros was never mentioned in the Commission on Audit ruling mandating perpetrators to return unauthorized bonuses. Additionally, the bonuses in question were released before she was appointed in the PhilHealth board.
Philippine Senate campaigns
2010
Running under the senatorial ticket of then-senator (later president) Benigno Aquino III, Hontiveros lost in the 2010 national elections, placing 13th overall, one place short to be elected. In 2012, Hontiveros called for the abolition of the pork barrel system, which was not necessarily corrupt if used appropriately but have been exploited by corrupt politicians. By the end of the year, the RH Law passed into law. The law mandated an age-appropriate sex education in the Philippines while providing maximum benefits to those with serious and life-threatening reproductive health conditions. Hontiveros has called on the government to fully implement the law amidst opposition from ultra-conservative factions.
2013