The New Society Movement ( fil, Kilusang Bagong Lipunan, KBL), formerly named the New Society Movement of United Nationalists, Liberals, et cetera ( fil, Kilusang Bagong Lipunan ng Nagkakaisang Nacionalista, Liberal, at iba pa, KBLNNL), is a right-wing

political party A political party is an organization that coordinates candidates to compete in a particular country's elections. It is common for the members of a party to hold similar ideas about politics, and parties may promote specific ideological or p ...

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 ...

. It was first formed in 1978 as an umbrella coalition of parties supporting then-

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 ...

Ferdinand E. 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 ...

for the

Interim An interim is a period of temporary pause or change in a sequence of events, or a temporary state, and is often applied to transitional political entities. Interim may also refer to: Temporary organizational arrangements (general concept) *Provis ...

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 ...

'' (the unicameral parliament) and was his political vehicle during his 20-year regime. It was reorganized as a political party in 1986, and is the furthest to the right of the political spectrum among active parties after Marcos' ouster. Since 1986, the KBL has contested in most of the national and local elections in the Philippines, but retained a single seat in the

House of Representatives House of Representatives is the name of legislative bodies in many countries and sub-national entitles. In many countries, the House of Representatives is the lower house of a bicameral legislature, with the corresponding upper house often c ...

Ilocos Norte Ilocos Norte, officially the Province of Ilocos Norte ( ilo, Probinsia ti Ilocos Norte; tl, Lalawigan ng Ilocos Norte), is a province of the Philippines located in the Ilocos Region. Its capital is Laoag City, located in the northwest corner ...

, which was held by former First Lady

Imelda Marcos Imelda Romualdez Marcos (; born Imelda Remedios Visitacion Trinidad Romualdez; July 2, 1929) is a Filipino politician who served as the First Lady of the Philippines from 1965 to 1986, wielding significant political power during the dictato ...

until 2019.

Establishment and ideology

The ideological roots of the "''Bagong Lipunan''" ("new society") concept can be traced to one Marcos' rationalizations for 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 ...

in September we 1972. In his rhetoric, Marcos contended that a system of "constitutional

authoritarianism Authoritarianism is a political system characterized by the rejection of political plurality, the use of strong central power to preserve the political ''status quo'', and reductions in the rule of law, separation of powers, and democratic voti ...

" was necessary in order to "reform society" and create a "new society" under his authority. Six years after the declaration of Martial Law, Marcos adopted this rhetoric and used the phrase as the name of the umbrella coalition of administration parties running in the

1978 Philippine parliamentary election Events January * January 1 – Air India Flight 855, a Boeing 747 passenger jet, crashes off the coast of Bombay, killing 213. * January 5 – Bülent Ecevit, of CHP, forms the new government of Turkey (42nd government). * January 6 � ...

. The coalition retained the name when it was reorganized as a political party in 1986.

Splinter factions after the People Power Revolution

After the 1986

People Power Revolution The People Power Revolution, also known as the EDSA Revolution or the February Revolution, was a series of popular demonstrations in the Philippines, mostly in Metro Manila, from February 22 to 25, 1986. There was a sustained campaign of c ...

ended Ferdinand Marcos' 21 years in power, he, his family and key followers fled to

Hawaii Hawaii ( ; haw, Hawaii or ) is a state in the Western United States, located in the Pacific Ocean about from the U.S. mainland. It is the only U.S. state outside North America, the only state that is an archipelago, and the only state ...

. Marcos' party machinery quickly began to break into numerous factions, the most successful of which were

Blas Ople Blas Fajardo Ople (February 3, 1927 – December 14, 2003) was a Filipino journalist and politician who held several high-ranking positions in the executive and legislative branches of the Philippine government, including as Senate President fr ...

's ''Partido Nacionalista ng Pilipinas'', a reorganized Nacionalista Party led by Rafael Palmares and Renato Cayetano after the death of Senator

Jose Roy Jose J. Roy (July 19, 1904 – March 14, 1986) was a Filipino lawyer, economist, and politician who served for 25 consecutive years as a congressman and senator in the Congress of the Philippines. Known as the "poor man's economist", he drafted, ...

, and a reorganized Kilusang Bagong Lipunan led by

Nicanor Yñiguez Nicanor Espina Yñiguez (November 6, 1915 – April 13, 2007) was a Filipino politician and Speaker of the Regular Batasang Pambansa from 1984 to 1986. Considered the "Father of Southern Leyte", he authored the law that created the province ...

. By the time of the

1987 Philippine constitutional plebiscite A constitutional plebiscite was held in the Philippines on 2 February 1987. The plebiscite is pursuant to Presidential Proclamation No. 3 which was issued on 25 March 1986 by President Corazon Aquino. It abolished the Office of the Prime Minist ...

, the reconstituted KBL under Yñiguez as the party furthest to the right among the rightwing political parties of the mid-1980s - remaining loyal to Marcos' authoritarian ideology in contrast to the Partido Nacionalista ng Pilipinas, which took a conservative

centrist Centrism is a political outlook or position involving acceptance or support of a balance of social equality and a degree of social hierarchy while opposing political changes that would result in a significant shift of society strongly to Left-w ...

stance, and the Palmares wing of the Nacionalista party and the Kalaw wing of the Liberal Party took center-right stances.

2009 Party division

On November 20, 2009, the KBL forged an alliance with the Nacionalista Party (NP) between Bongbong Marcos and NP Chairman Senator

Manny Villar Manuel "Manny" Bamba Villar Jr. (; born December 13, 1949) is a Filipino billionaire businessman and former politician. He previously served as senator from 2001 to 2013 and as the President of the Senate of the Philippines from 2006 to 2008. ...

at the Laurel House in

Mandaluyong Mandaluyong, officially the City of Mandaluyong ( fil, Lungsod ng Mandaluyong), is a first class highly urbanized city in the National Capital Region of the Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 425,758 people. Loca ...

. Bongbong was later on removed as a member by the KBL National Executive Committee on November 29. As such, the NP broke its alliance with the KBL due to internal conflicts within the party, though Marcos remained part of the NP Senatorial line-up.

Candidates for the 2010 Philippine general election

* Vetellano Acosta – Presidential Candidate (lost) *

Jay Sonza Jose Yumang Sonza (born September 20, 1955), also known as Jay Sonza, is a Filipino former newscaster and talk show host. He was the former station manager of the terrestrial television station UNTV 37 from 2004 to 2009. Programs * ''Get it ...

– Vice Presidential Candidate (lost) *Senatorial slate: *#Alma Lood (lost) *#Hector Villanueva (lost) *#Shariff Ibrahim Albani (lost)

Notable members

Past

*Rodolfo B. Albano, Jr. — (1987-1995; moved to Lakas-CMD in 1995) former Representative of 1st District of Isabela *

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 ...

- former Member of

Interim Batasang Pambansa The Interim Batasang Pambansa (English: Interim National Assembly) was the legislature of the Republic of the Philippines from its inauguration on June 12, 1978 to June 5, 1984. It served as a transitional legislative body mandated by the 1973 ...

from

Southern Mindanao Davao Region, formerly called Southern Mindanao ( ceb, Rehiyon sa Davao; fil, Rehiyon ng Davao), is an administrative region in the Philippines, designated as Region XI. It is situated at the southeastern portion of Mindanao and comprises fiv ...

and

Regular Batasang Pambansa The Regular Batasang Pambansa (English: Regular National Assembly), or the First Batasang Pambansa, was the meeting of the Batasang Pambansa from the beginning of its session on July 23, 1984 until it was abolished by President Corazon Aquino on ...

from

Davao del Sur Davao del Sur ( ceb, Habagatang Dabaw; ), officially the Province of Davao del Sur, is a province in the Philippines located in the Davao Region in Mindanao. Its capital is Digos City. Davao City is the largest city in terms of area and populat ...

's at-large district *

Helena Benitez Helena Zoila Tirona Benitez (June 27, 1914 – July 14, 2016) was a Filipina academic and administrator of the Philippine Women's University. Biography Benitez was born in Manila to Conrado Benitez, a ''pensionado'' to the United States and a me ...

- former Member of

from

Region IV-A Calabarzon (), formally known as the Southern Tagalog Mainland, is an administrative region in the Philippines, designated as Region IV-A. The region comprises five provinces: Batangas, Cavite, Laguna, Quezon, and Rizal; and one highly urba ...

and

from

Cavite Cavite, officially the Province of Cavite ( tl, Lalawigan ng Kabite; Chavacano: ''Provincia de Cavite''), is a province in the Philippines located in the Calabarzon region in Luzon. Located on the southern shores of Manila Bay and southwest ...

* Conrado M. Estrella III - (1987-1992; moved to Nationalist People's Coalition in 1992) former Representative of 6th District of Pangasinan *

Salvador Laurel Salvador Roman Hidalgo Laurel (, November 18, 1928 – January 27, 2004), also known as Doy Laurel, was a Filipino lawyer and politician who served as the vice president of the Philippines from 1986 to 1992 under President Corazon Aquino an ...

- Mambabatas Pambansa (Assemblyman) of

from

, before he left and formed

UNIDO The United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) (French: Organisation des Nations unies pour le développement industriel; French/Spanish acronym: ONUDI) is a specialized agency of the United Nations that assists countries in ...

in 1980 * Jaime C. Laya- 5th

Governor of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas The Governor of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (Filipino language, Filipino: ''Tagapangasiwa ng Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas'') is the chief executive officer of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas, the Philippines' central bank. This position succeeds ...

, 1st Action Officer of

Intramuros Administration The Intramuros Administration (IA) is an agency of the Department of Tourism of the Philippines that is mandated to orderly restore, administer, and develop the historic walled area of Intramuros that is situated within the modern City of Manil ...

, former Minister of Education, Culture, and Sports, Mambabatas Pambansa of

from Minister of Budget and Management, Minister of Budget and Management * Bongbong Marcos — (moved to Nacionalista Party in 2009, then to

Partido Federal ng Pilipinas Partido Federal ng Pilipinas ( en, Federal Party of the Philippines; PFP) is a national political party in the Philippines. It is chaired by Bongbong Marcos, president of the Philippines who won by a landslide in the 2022 election. During the r ...

in 2021) former Vice Governor and Governor of

, Representative of 2nd District of Ilocos Norte, and Senator *

Imee Marcos Maria Imelda Josefa Remedios "Imee" Romualdez Marcos (; born November 12, 1955) is a Filipina politician and former actress serving as a Senator since 2019. She is the daughter of Ferdinand Marcos and former first lady Imelda Marcos and the o ...

— (moved to Nacionalista Party) Senator, former Governor of Ilocos Norte, Representative of 2nd District of Ilocos Norte *

Estelito Mendoza Estelito "Titong" Patdu Mendoza (born January 5, 1930) is a Filipino lawyer who served as Solicitor General of the Philippines from 1972 to 1986. As Solicitor General, he successfully defended the validity of the 1973 Constitution of the Philipp ...

— former

Solicitor General of the Philippines The Office of the Solicitor General of the Philippines ( fil, Tanggapan ng Taga-usig Panlahat), formerly known as the Bureau of Justice, is an independent and autonomous office attached to the Department of Justice. The OSG is headed by Menardo ...

Governor of Pampanga The governor of Pampanga is the local chief executive of the Philippine province of Pampanga Pampanga, officially the Province of Pampanga ( pam, Lalawigan ning Pampanga; tl, Lalawigan ng Pampanga ), is a province in the Central Luzon regi ...

, Mambabatas Pambansa (Assemblyman) of

from Region III, and

Minister of Justice A justice ministry, ministry of justice, or department of justice is a ministry or other government agency in charge of the administration of justice. The ministry or department is often headed by a minister of justice (minister for justice in a ...

* Benjamin Romualdez- 10th

Governor of Leyte The governor of Leyte is the local chief executive of the Philippine province of Leyte (province), Leyte. List References {{Provincial governors in the Philippines Governors of Leyte (province) Governors of provinces of the Ph ...

, Ambassador of the Philippines to the United States, and Member of

from Region VIII and

from

Leyte Leyte ( ) is an island in the Visayas group of islands in the Philippines. It is eighth-largest and sixth-most populous island in the Philippines, with a total population of 2,626,970 as of 2020 census. Since the accessibility of land has be ...

Carlos P. Romulo Carlos Peña Romulo Sr. (January 14, 1898 – December 15, 1985) was a Filipino diplomat, statesman, soldier, journalist and author. He was a reporter at the age of 16, a newspaper editor by 20, and a publisher at 32. He was a co-founder of t ...

- former

Minister of Foreign Affairs A foreign affairs minister or minister of foreign affairs (less commonly minister for foreign affairs) is generally a cabinet minister in charge of a state's foreign policy and relations. The formal title of the top official varies between co ...

and Member of Interim Batasang Pambansa from

Chavit Singson Luis Crisologo Singson (born June 21, 1941), better known as Chavit Singson (), is a Filipino businessman and politician, serving as the mayor of Narvacan, Ilocos Sur, since 2019 up to 2022. He was the governor of the province of Ilocos Su ...

- Governor of

Ilocos Sur Ilocos Sur, officially the Province of Ilocos Sur ( ilo, Probinsia ti Ilocos Sur; tl, Lalawigan ng Ilocos Sur), is a province in the Philippines located in the Ilocos Region in Luzon. Located on the mouth of the Mestizo River is the capital o ...

Cesar Virata Cesar Enrique Aguinaldo Virata (born 12 December 1930) is a Filipino former statesman and businessman who was the fourth Prime Minister of the Philippines from 1981 to 1986. He is currently the corporate vice chairman of the Rizal Commercial B ...

- 4th

Prime Minister of the Philippines The prime minister of the Philippines was the official designation of the head of the government (whereas the president of the Philippines was the head of state) of the Philippines from 1978 until the People Power Revolution in 1986. During m ...

, 3rd Director-General of

National Economic and Development Authority The National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA; fil, Pambansang Pangasiwaan sa Kabuhayan at Pagpapaunlad) is an independent cabinet-level agency of the Philippine government responsible for economic development and planning. It is headed ...

, former

Minister of Finance A finance minister is an executive or cabinet position in charge of one or more of government finances, economic policy and financial regulation. A finance minister's portfolio has a large variety of names around the world, such as "treasury", " ...

, and Mambabatas Pambansa (Assemblyman) of

from

and

from

Present

*Remy Albano- Vice Governor of

Apayao Apayao, officially the Province of Apayao ( ilo, Probinsia ti Apayao; fil, Lalawigan ng Apayao), is a landlocked province in the Philippines in the Cordillera Administrative Region in Luzon. Kabugao serves as its capital. The provincial capit ...

Raymond Bagatsing Ramon "Raymond" San Diego Bagatsing III is a Filipino actor, model and aspiring politician. Having jumpstarted his acting career in the early 90s, he is most notable for the role of Jaime Laurel in the hit ABS-CBN series ''Pusong Ligaw''. Ea ...

–

Manila Manila ( , ; fil, Maynila, ), officially the City of Manila ( fil, Lungsod ng Maynila, ), is the capital of the Philippines, and its second-most populous city. It is highly urbanized and, as of 2019, was the world's most densely populate ...

vice mayoral candidate (2022), actor *Roberto "Amay Bisaya" Reyes Jambongana –

Bohol Bohol (), officially the Province of Bohol ( ceb, Lalawigan sa Bohol; tl, Lalawigan ng Bohol), is an island province of the Philippines located in the Central Visayas region, consisting of the island itself and 75 minor surrounding islands. It ...

gubernatorial candidate (2019), comedian * Jerry Dalipog- Governor of

Ifugao Ifugao, officially the Province of Ifugao ( ilo, Probinsia ti Ifugao; tl, Lalawigan ng Ifugao), is a landlocked province of the Philippines in the Cordillera Administrative Region in Luzon. Its capital is Lagawe and it borders Benguet to the ...

Larry Gadon Lorenzo "Larry" Gacilo Gadon (born March 1, 1958) is a Filipino lawyer. He ran for a senatorial seat in 2016, 2019 and 2022 election under UniTeam senatorial slate of Bongbong Marcos, all of which were unsuccessful. He is famously known on ...

– Senatorial candidate (2016, 2019 and 2022), lawyer; pushed for the impeachment of former Chief Justice Maria Lourdes Sereno *Efren Rafanan Sr.- Provincial Board Member of

Electoral performance

Presidential and vice presidential elections

Legislative elections

References

{{Philippine political parties Anti-communist parties Conservative parties in the Philippines Far-right politics in Asia Political parties established in 1978 Presidency of Ferdinand Marcos