A senatorial election was held on November 8, 1971 in the

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

. The opposition

Liberal Party The Liberal Party is any of many political parties around the world. The meaning of ''liberal'' varies around the world, ranging from liberal conservatism on the right to social liberalism on the left. __TOC__ Active liberal parties This is a li ...

won five seats in the

Philippine Senate The Senate of the Philippines (Filipino language, Filipino: ''Senado ng Pilipinas'', also ''Mataas na Kapulungan ng Pilipinas'' or "upper chamber") is the upper house of Congress of the Philippines, Congress of the bicameral legislature of the ...

while three seats were won by the

Nacionalista Party The Nacionalista Party (Filipino and Spanish: ''Partido Nacionalista''; ) is the oldest political party in both the Philippines and in Southeast Asia in general. It is responsible for leading the country throughout the majority of the 20th ce ...

, the administration party; this was seen as a consequence of the

Plaza Miranda bombing The Plaza Miranda bombing ( fil, Pambobomba sa Liwasang Miranda) occurred during a political rally of the Liberal Party at Plaza Miranda, Quiapo district, Manila, the Philippines on August 21, 1971. It caused nine deaths and injured 95 others ...

on August 21, 1971, which wounded all of the Liberal Party's candidates and almost took the lives of

John Henry Osmeña John Henry Renner Osmeña (January 17, 1935 – February 2, 2021), also known as Sonny Osmeña or simply John Osmeña, was the grandson of Philippine President Sergio Osmeña. He served as a senator of the Philippines from 1971 to 1972, 1987 to ...

and

Jovito Salonga Jovito "Jovy" Reyes Salonga, KGCR (; June 22, 1920 – March 10, 2016) was a Filipino politician and lawyer, as well as a leading opposition leader during the regime of Ferdinand Marcos from the declaration of martial law in 1972 until the P ...

. Their terms as senators were cut short as a result of the declaration of

martial law Martial law is the imposition of direct military control of normal civil functions or suspension of civil law by a government, especially in response to an emergency where civil forces are overwhelmed, or in an occupied territory. Use Marti ...

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) *President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ful ...

Ferdinand Marcos Ferdinand Emmanuel Edralin Marcos Sr. ( , , ; September 11, 1917 – September 28, 1989) was a Filipino politician, lawyer, dictator, and kleptocrat who was the 10th president of the Philippines from 1965 to 1986. He ruled under martial ...

on September 23, 1972. Due to the ratification of a new constitution in 1973, the Senate was abolished and the

unicameral Unicameralism (from ''uni''- "one" + Latin ''camera'' "chamber") is a type of legislature, which consists of one house or assembly, that legislates and votes as one. Unicameral legislatures exist when there is no widely perceived need for multic ...

parliamentary

Batasang Pambansa The Batasang Pambansa Complex, or simply the Batasan (), is the seat of the House of Representatives of the Philippines. It is located along the Batasan Road in Batasan Hills, Quezon City. The complex was initially the home of the Batasang Pa ...

was instituted. In 1987, a new constitution was approved that reverted to the presidential and

bicameral Bicameralism is a type of legislature, one divided into two separate assemblies, chambers, or houses, known as a bicameral legislature. Bicameralism is distinguished from unicameralism, in which all members deliberate and vote as a single grou ...

legislative system. This means that this would be the last election for the Senate until the 1987 election.

Retiring incumbents

Liberal Party

# Sergio Osmeña Jr.

Nacionalista Party

# Wenceslao Lagumbay

Nationalist Citizens' Party

Lorenzo Tañada Lorenzo "Ka Tanny" Martinez Tañada Sr. CCLH (, born Lorenzo Tañada y Martínez; August 10, 1898 – May 28, 1992) was a Filipino nationalist, lawyer, solicitor general, senator, national athlete, and human and civil rights defender best known f ...

Results

The

won five seats, while the

won three. Two Liberal incumbents successfully defended their seats:

Genaro Magsaysay Genaro del Fierro Magsaysay (19 September 1924 – 25 December 1978) was a Filipino politician and lawyer. He was born in Castillejos, Zambales on 19 September 1924. Magsaysay earned a bachelor's degree in law from the Ateneo de Manila University ...

and

, while

Alejandro Almendras Alejandro Durano Almendras (27 February 1919 – 4 August 1995) was a Filipino politician who served as a Senator of the Philippines. He was also governor of the then united Davao province. Early life and education Almendras was born in Danao ...

and

Eva Estrada Kalaw Eva Kalaw ( Evangelina Reynada Estrada; June 16, 1920 – May 25, 2017) was a Filipina politician who served as a senator in the Senate of the Philippines from 1965 to 1972 during the presidency of Ferdinand Marcos. She was one of the key oppo ...

of the Nacionalistas successfully defended their seats, as well. The other four winners are neophyte senators:

Eddie Ilarde Edgar Ubalde Ilarde (August 25, 1934 – August 4, 2020) was a Filipino radio and television host. On radio and television, he hosted programs such as ''Kahapon Lamang'', '' Student Canteen'', and ''Darigold Jamboree''. His first position as a p ...

, Ramon Mitra Jr., and

of the Liberals, and

Ernesto Maceda Ernesto "Ernie" Madarang Maceda Sr. (March 26, 1935 – June 20, 2016) was a Filipino politician, lawyer, and columnist who served as a Senator of the Philippines from 1971 to 1972 and again from 1987 to 1998. He served as Senate President fro ...

of the Nacionalistas. Nacionalista Senator

Dominador Aytona Dominador Rosauro Aytona (23 May 1918 – 26 September 2017) was a Filipino politician and lawyer. Aytona was a native of Libon, Albay, born to Jose Ataviado Aytona and Vivencia Cerdon Rosauro. He attended the Albay Training Department and the A ...

lost his reelection bid. Key: * ‡ Seats up * + Gained by a party from another party * √ Held by the incumbent * * Held by the same party with a new senator

Per candidate

Per party

References

External links

Official website of the Commission on Elections
{{Philippine elections

1971 * The year 1971 had three partial solar eclipses ( February 25, July 22 and August 20) and two total lunar eclipses (February 10, and August 6). The world population increased by 2.1% this year, the highest increase in history. Events Ja ...

1971 elections in the Philippines