Through his reported connections with the royal family of Abu Dhabi, he helped secure a pardon for the migrant worker, having convinced the UAE authorities that Balabagan was only 15 years old and not 22 as indicated in her falsified passport.

[2] Señeres first bared his intention to run for the Philippine presidency on October 20, 2014, during the launch of his Respect our Security of Employment (ROSE) movement in Butuan.

[4] Under the Partido ng Manggagawa at Magsasaka, he fielded a vice-presidential candidate and a 12-man senatorial slate,[4] and launched his presidential bid on October 11, 2015, at the Liwasang Bonifacio in Manila.

He was mostly involved in labor issues having been an Ambassador to the United Arab Emirates overseeing the plight of Overseas Filipino Workers in the gulf state including the case of Sarah Balabagan.

[2] For his campaign method which he dubbed as a Kalyeserye style of approach, Señeres organized small meetings in streets and publicly accessible places such as parking lots.

[2] Despite these initiatives, however, citing a failing health condition due to his long-standing bout with diabetes, Señeres finally decided to withdraw his presidential bid on February 5, 2016.

[2] Alleging that the government is avoiding the issue, he said that he decided to run for president because he can't make executive orders if he stays in Congress, adding that he would direct the Department of Labor and Employment to implement the law against contractualization if he is elected.

However, it was reported by the Philippine Daily Inquirer that two Supreme Court justices, Jose Catral Mendoza and Bienvenido Reyes, pressured Señeres to withdraw from the presidential election in favor of Duterte in a meeting of fraternity brothers in Pasig on December 4, 2015.

Seneres denied the newspaper report a week later, saying that he discussed other matters with the justices, and that two other lawyers in attendance were those who offered the possibility of Duterte substituting him.

[16] Shortly after withdrawing his bid for presidency for health reasons, Señeres suffered a cardiac arrest and was admitted to the intensive care unit of the St. Luke's Medical Center in Taguig,[19] which according to his sister-in-law was triggered by his diabetes.

On February 8, 2016, in an interview with DZMM, his eldest son RJ said that Señeres died from his cardiac arrest that morning while at the intensive care unit.

On the same day, an earlier motion was filed by Partido ng Manggagawa at Magsasaka to declare Señeres' presidential candidate slot vacant.