Senators on Sunday, Nov. 8, welcomed the result of the US elections and are now looking forward to the start of President-elect Joe Biden’s administration.

Sen. Francis “Kiko” Pangilinan said the recent US election only proves “that democracy is about the peoples’ will.”

“We congratulate US President-elect Joe Biden, Vice President-elect Kamala Harris, and the people of the United States. As it is in the US, it is the will of the people who in their vast numbers animate democracy and chart the course of their future,” Pangilinan said in a statement.

“The gift of democracy is a gift we, the people, give ourselves, and democracy is kept alive by passion and vigilance to translate our individual actions into a collective outcome,” he added.

Senate Majority Leader Juan Miguel “Migz” Zubiri said now is the time for the US to unite again after a very divisive election.

“Now it’s time to heal, time to stop fighting and start believing in eeach other in the United States of America. Where the American dream is for everyone and not just for a few,” Zubiri said in a statement.

“Congratulations is in order not just for the President-elect but for democracy in your country. A model for many countries including ours to follow,” he also said.

Zubiri also said he welcomes a Biden-led US government noting that he is “a practicing Catholic” and is only the second Catholic to be elected to the White House.

“(He) carries a rosary with him wherever he goes. And that is good enough for me… peace and healing to our brothers and sisters in the US of A,” he added.

Sen. Risa Hontiveros, likewise, said she views Biden and Harris’ victory “a momentous occasion” that “serves as a salve over the world’s wounds from divisiveness and creeping fascism of the last few years.”

“I would like to thank the people of the United States for showing us that a full-blown authoritarian can be stopped by presenting a clear, forthcoming, and hopeful future for all,” Hontiveros said also in a statement.

As chair of the Senate Committee on Women, Children, Family Relations and Gender Equality, Hontiveros said she applauds Harris for her “barrier-breaking win” as the first woman, first African-American, and first person of South Asian descent to be US vice president.

“I wish her all the best in performing the people’s mandate,” she said.

Recto: PH ambassador ‘well-positioned’ under Biden presidency

Senate President Pro Tempore Ralph Recto, for his part, said he believes the Philippines’ Ambassador to the US Jose Manuel “Babes” Romualdez is already “well-positioned” to steer the country’s interests under a Biden presidency.

“Our man in Washington DC is well-positioned to help steer our country’s interests through whatever changes a Democratic White House would bring to PH-US relations,” Recto said.

“Long before he allowed himself to be conscripted for foreign service, Ambassador Babes Romualdez already had enough contacts in the American capital to be considered a Beltway insider,” Recto said.

Under a Biden-led US government, the senator said the Philippines should anticipate “shifting geopolitical tides, changing global trade winds, and a world devastated by the pandemic call for a nimble foreign policy that is solely dictated by our national interest, not pro-Beijing nor pro-Biden, but pro-Filipino.”

“I am confident that with Secretary (Teddy) Locsin at the helm of the , and with a capable man in our detachment in Washington DC, what is good for our country in the diplomatic front will always be pursued and protected,” Recto stressed.