Politics of the Philippines

Before the arrival of Ferdinand Magellan, the Philippines was split into numerous barangays, which were not unlike the Greek city-states. These barangays warred, made peace, traded and had relations with each other. In Mindanao, Islamic sultanates such as the Sultanate of Sulu and Maguindanao, prospered. Ferdinand Magellan's death in 1521 can be partly attributed to a dispute between Lapu-Lapu and Rajah Humabon for control of Cebu. The Kingdom of Maynila was trading with China and other nearby empires when Miguel Lopez de Legazpi conquered the kingdom in 1565 and assimilated it with the other kingdoms he had conquered nearby to unite the Philippines under Spanish rule.

The Illustrados in Madrid.

Upon the subjugation of the local population in Manila and Cebu, the Spaniards refused the locals any political participation. The old ruling class in the pre-Spanish era were given essentially powerless government posts. Several revolts erupted against Spain but were all defeated. In 1808, when Joseph Bonaparte became king of Spain, the liberal constitution of Cadiz was adopted, giving the Philippines representation to the Spanish Cortes. However, once the Spanish overthrew the Bonapartes, the Philippine, and indeed colonial, representation in the Spanish Cortes was rescinded.

The restoration of Philippine representation to the Cortes was one of the grievances of the Illustrados, the learned indigenous class during the late 1800s. The Illustrados mounted a campaign that would include indigenous voices in running the government. However, the Katipunan advocated complete Philippine independence, thereby starting the Philippine Revolution in 1896. After the execution of José Rizal on December 30, 1896, the leader of the Illustrados who disapproved of the revolution, the rebellion intensified. Cavite, Bulacan and Morong were the main areas of conflict; the Katipunan in Cavite had won several battles against the Spaniards, but was split into the Magdiwang and Magdalo factions. A conference was held in 1897 to unite the two factions, but instead caused further division that led to the execution of Andres Bonifacio, who was then the leader of the Katipunan; Bonifacio's death passed the control of the Katipunan to Emilio Aguinaldo.

The death of Bonifacio also caused several of the revolutionaries to be demoralized; Aguinaldo and his men retreated northward until reaching Biak-na-Bato in San Miguel, Bulacan. The Spaniards and the revolutionaries signed the Pact of Biak-na-Bato, that provided for Aguinaldo's surrender and exile to Hong Kong, and amnesty and payment of indemnities by the Spaniards to the revolutionaries. However, both sides eventually violated the agreement, and this allowed the United States admiral George Dewey to lead his squadron to Manila Bay, defeating the Spanish navy. Aguinaldo returned from exile, most of the Philippine revolutionaries rallying to his cause, and negotiated with the Americans, while the Americans in 1898 defeated the Spaniards in what was called a mock battle in Manila, and took control of the city. Aguinaldo then proclaimed the independence of the Philippines on June 12, 1898, at his home in Cavite. A Congress was convened in January 1899 in Barasoain Church and inaugurated the first Philippine Republic.

The Philippine–American War erupted in February in a skirmish in Manila; the Filipinos lost the battle, and Aguinaldo again began a northward retreat. Aguinaldo was captured on April 1, 1901, at Palanan, Isabela, while the Americans had already started setting up civil governments in areas that had already been pacified.

William Howard Taft addressing the Philippine Assembly.

The Americans gave Filipinos limited self-government at the local level by 1901, and the Americans passed the Philippine Organic Act in 1902 to introduce a national government; by 1907, an election to the Philippine Assembly was held. Led by Sergio Osmeña, the assembly was held predominantly by the Nacionalista Party, which advocated independence; they were opposed by the Progresista Party, which advocated statehood within the United States. The Americans controlled the Philippine Commission, the upper house of the Philippine Legislature. The Nacionalista-dominated Philippine Assembly, and later the Philippine Senate, which was created by the Jones Law and replaced the Philippine Commission, was often at odds with the Governor-General. However, the Nacionalistas were split into camps loyal to Osmeña and Senate President Manuel L. Quezon. Several independence missions were sent to Washington, D.C.; the OsRox Mission led by Osmeña and House Speaker Manuel Roxas resulted in the Hare–Hawes–Cutting Act. However, the Senate rejected this; a new law, the Tydings–McDuffie Act which was marginally different and more importantly, was supported by Quezon, was approved and paved the way for the Commonwealth of the Philippines.

Quezon and Osmeña reconciled, and both were easily elected as president and vice president respectively, in 1935. The Nacionalistas controlled the now unicameral National Assembly for the entirety of the Commonwealth, with the understanding that the Americans would grant independence in the near future. Quezon pressed for constitutional amendments that would allow him to obtain a second term and the restoration of a bicameral legislature. Quezon did obtain both amendments, with the newly restored Senate now being elected at-large instead of per districts, as what was done during the pre-Commonwealth era. Quezon, Osmeña and the Nacionalista Party as a whole both won the elections in 1941 in much larger margins.

The Japanese invasion of 1941 at the onset of World War II delayed this granting of independence, forced the Commonwealth government to go into exile, and subjected the country to a puppet government. The KALIBAPI became the sole legal political party, and Jose P. Laurel was declared president of the Second Philippine Republic. This nationalist KALIBAPI government espoused anti-American sentiment. Exiled leaders of the previous first Commonwealth government, including Quezon and Osmeña, provided limited support to the U.S. Despite the relationship with Japanese officials and opposition to U.S. control, the nationalist KALIBAPI government of Laurel refused to declare war on the U.S. However, the Americans reconquered the country in 1944, and Osmeña, who had succeeded Quezon upon the latter's death, restored the Commonwealth government. The first meeting of a bicameral Commonwealth Congress occurred.

The Nacionalistas were divided during the 1946 presidential election, with Manuel Roxas setting up what would later be the Liberal Party. Roxas defeated Osmeña, and became the last president of the Commonwealth; the Americans agreed to grant independence on July 4, 1946.

President Manuel Roxas' inauguration as the first president of an independent Philippines.

Roxas succumbed to a heart attack in 1948, allowing Vice President Elpidio Quirino to rule the country for the next six years, after winning in 1949. Quirino's Liberal government was widely seen as corrupt and was easily beaten by his former Defense secretary Ramon Magsaysay in the 1953 election. Magsaysay, who oversaw the surrender of the long-running Hukbalahap Rebellion, was massively popular. Before the 1957 election, he was killed in a plane crash. His vice president, Carlos P. Garcia, succeeded him and won the election. He implemented a "Filipino First" policy and an austerity program. Garcia was defeated by his Vice President, Diosdado Macapagal of the Liberal Party, in 1961. Macapagal initiated a return to a system of free enterprise not seen since the Quirino administration. However, Macapagal's policies faced stiff opposition in Congress, where the Nacionalistas hold the majority. Macapagal was defeated in 1965 by Senator Ferdinand Marcos.

Marcos' infrastructure projects were the feature policy of his term, he was the first president to be reelected, in 1969, although the election was tainted by violence and allegations that Marcos used the treasury to fund his campaign. However, significant protests, such as the First Quarter Storm, the communist and Moro insurgencies, and civil unrest, heightened. This made Marcos in 1972 declare martial law and suspend the constitution. A new constitution calling for a semi-presidential government was approved in 1973, but Marcos still ruled by decree until 1978, when the Interim Batasang Pambansa was elected. However, opposition groups, whose leaders mostly had already left in exile, boycotted the election, and Marcos still allowed martial law to continue. Marcos did end martial law in 1981, but opposition groups still boycotted the 1981 presidential election, which Marcos easily won.

Opposition leader Benigno Aquino Jr. was slain upon his return to the country in 1983. By this time, the government was marred by alleged rampant corruption and allegations of human rights violations. The opposition participated in the 1984 parliamentary election and won several seats, but not enough to topple Marcos' KBL. To counter growing opposition, Marcos called a snap election in 1986, the opposition nominated Benigno's widow Corazon as their candidate. Marcos was declared the winner, but the opposition refused to accept the result, alleging that the election was rigged. The People Power Revolution drove Marcos from power, and Aquino became president. Aquino ruled by decree in 1987 when a new constitution restoring the presidential system was approved. In the ensuing legislative election, the pro-Aquino parties won most of the seats in Congress.

Corazon Aquino was inaugurated president on February 25, 1986; it was one of two presidential inaugurations that day.

Aquino's government was mired by coup attempts, high inflation and unemployment, and natural calamities, but introduced land reform and market liberalization. Aquino's administration also saw the pullout of the U.S. bases in Subic Bay and Clark. As the 1992 election grew closer, Aquino declined to run even though she could do so, and instead supported Ramon Mitra; she later backtracked and threw her support to Fidel V. Ramos, who later won albeit under controversial circumstances. Ramos had to face an ongoing energy crisis that had started during the Aquino administration which was resolved when Ramos issued contracts favorable to power producers. The Ramos administration hosted the 1996 APEC summit, reinstated the death penalty, signed a peace agreement with the Moro National Liberation Front, and bore the brunt of the 1997 Asian financial crisis. He wanted to amend the constitution, but Aquino and other sectors opposed the measure and backed off. Ramos' vice president Joseph Estrada defeated the former's party mate Jose de Venecia and several others in the 1998 election in a comfortable margin; meanwhile de Venecia's running mate Gloria Macapagal Arroyo was elected vice president.

Estrada expanded the land reform program and the death penalty and refused to sign contracts with sovereign guarantees on public projects. Estrada also wanted to amend the constitution but was again rebuffed by Aquino, the Catholic Church, and the left. The administration launched an "all-out war" against the Moro Islamic Liberation Front that saw the government retaking Camp Abubakar, the main rebel encampment. However, the administration was embroiled in charges of cronyism and corruption; the Juetengate scandal led to his impeachment by the House of Representatives. In the impeachment trial, Estrada's allies in the Senate successfully prevented evidence to be presented; this triggered massive protests. Days later, in what would be called the 2001 EDSA Revolution, the Armed Forces of the Philippines withdrew their support to Estrada and transferred their allegiance to Vice President Arroyo; the Supreme Court later ruled the presidency as vacant, and Estrada left Malacañang Palace.

Arroyo was sworn in as president on January 20, 2001. Four months later, Estrada's supporters lay siege to the presidential palace but were later expelled; Arroyo's People Power Coalition won a majority of seats in the 2001 elections and therefore consolidated power. In 2003, Arroyo put down a coup attempt in the central business district. Arroyo faced Fernando Poe Jr., a friend of Estrada, along with three others in 2004, and won on a slim plurality. Months after Poe died in December, it was exposed, via wiretapped conversations, that Arroyo rigged the election. On a national address, Arroyo said that she was "sorry on a lapse of judgment." The opposition did not let up, and she had to put down two more coup attempts. The opposition united in the 2007 Senate election and won easily, but Arroyo's allies still held the House of Representatives. At the end of her presidency, Arroyo became the most unpopular president on record, with increases on taxes, attempts to amend the constitution, and the alleged illegitimacy of her administration as the reasons.

Before the 2010 election, Arroyo's party nominated Gilberto Teodoro for president; however, some quarters suggested that Arroyo was secretly supporting Manny Villar, who was the front-runner. However, former president Aquino died, and her son, Benigno Aquino III, overtook Villar in the polls. Estrada overtook Villar in the polls but still lost to Aquino. Aquino embarked on an anti-corruption drive, saw the economy grew and maintain high popularity. However, with natural calamities, and scams on the use of pork barrel and other discretionary funds coming into the light, the Aquino administration had to contend with rising opposition.

In 2016, Aquino's handpicked successor, Mar Roxas, grandson of Manuel Roxas, was decisively defeated by Davao City mayor Rodrigo Duterte in the 2016 Presidential Election. Duterte then implemented a massive War on Drugs that led to thousands of deaths. The opposition, now primarily Liberal Party, pro-Aquino figures, opposed the killings, branding it as human rights abuses. The administration then made peace with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front, ushering in the Bangsamoro. The opposition was wiped out in the 2019 midterms, where all of its senatorial candidates lost, and only a handful of winners in the lower house.