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Homophobic Boxer Manny Pacquiao Is Set To Become A Senator

Early results show Pacquiao has the votes to take a seat on the Filipino Senate.

Boxing champion Manny Pacquiao, who made headlines this past February for a slew of anti-gay remarks, is set to win a seat in the Filipino senate.

The Filipino Senate has 24 members with 12 seats up for reelection every three years. As senators are elected to six-year terms, this election cycle saw 50 candidates running to fill 12 seats. An unofficial count shows that Pacquiao has garnered over 15.5 million votes, which places him in seventh, all but securing him one of the 12 open spots.

Results won't officially be announced until next week, but it appears as though Pacquiao, who has served in the country's House of Representatives since 2010, is well on his way to snagging a new job.

This comes just months after the legendary boxer described gay couples as "worse than animals" in an interview with a local TV station. Despite being dropped from a multi-million dollar sponsorship deal with Nike because of his comments, Pacquiao stands behind what he said. Amid the intense media backlash, the boxer decided to reinvent himself as an ultra-conservative politician.

Pacquiao's longtime promoter Bob Arum told ESPN that he believes the move means Pacquiao will be stepping away from the ring for good.

"My feeling is that he's been elected to a very, very important position in the Filipino government, so he...doesn't [have] time to...train for a fight the way he has to," he began. "When it's over, it's over."

Though Pacquiao's eventual senate win will be met with disappointment by the LGBT Filipino community, there is still cause for celebration in the election of Geraldine Roman, a trans candidate from the province of Bataan, to the country's House of Representatives.

h/t: Pink News

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