Lakas–Christian Muslim Democrats, abbreviated as Lakas–CMD and also known simply as Lakas, is a political party in the Philippines. Lakas–CMD is considered to sit on the

centre-right Centre-right politics lean to the right of the political spectrum, but are closer to the centre. From the 1780s to the 1880s, there was a shift in the Western world of social class structure and the economy, moving away from the nobility and me ...

of the political spectrum, and is influenced by

Christian democracy Christian democracy (sometimes named Centrist democracy) is a political ideology that emerged in 19th-century Europe under the influence of Catholic social teaching and neo-Calvinism. It was conceived as a combination of modern Democracy, d ...

and

Islamic democracy There exist a number of perspectives on the relationship of Islam and democracy among Islamic political theorists, the general Muslim public, and Western authors. In 2021, a number of Muslim majority countries are Islamic and secular democr ...

. Since the 2022 elections, Lakas–CMD is currently the biggest party in the House of Representatives, with the party's president,

Martin Romualdez Ferdinand Martin Gomez Romualdez (, born November 14, 1963) is a Filipino businessman, lawyer and politician serving as the Speaker of the House of Representatives since July 25, 2022. He is also serving as the Representative for the 1st dis ...

, serving as

Speaker of the House The speaker of a deliberative assembly, especially a legislative body, is its presiding officer, or the chair. The title was first used in 1377 in England. Usage The title was first recorded in 1377 to describe the role of Thomas de Hunger ...

Vice President A vice president, also director in British English, is an officer in government or business who is below the president (chief executive officer) in rank. It can also refer to executive vice presidents, signifying that the vice president is on ...

Sara Duterte is the party's

chairperson The chairperson, also chairman, chairwoman or chair, is the presiding officer of an organized group such as a board, committee, or deliberative assembly. The person holding the office, who is typically elected or appointed by members of the grou ...

, and the party is a dominant member of the

UniTeam Alliance The UniTeam Alliance is an electoral alliance in the Philippines formed to support the candidacies of Bongbong Marcos and Sara Duterte in the 2022 presidential and vice-presidential elections and their allies in the 2022 Philippine general el ...

led by President

Bongbong Marcos Ferdinand "Bongbong" Romualdez Marcos Jr. ( , , ; born September 13, 1957), commonly referred to by the initials PBBM or BBM, is a Filipino politician who is the 17th and current president of the Philippines. He previously served as a sena ...

. Lakas–CMD has produced one President of the Philippines,

Gloria Macapagal Arroyo Maria Gloria Macaraeg Macapagal Arroyo (, born April 5, 1947), often referred to by her initials GMA, is a Filipino academic and politician serving as one of the House Deputy Speakers since 2022, and previously from 2016 to 2017. She previously ...

, who was in power when the party was formed in 2009, and one vice president, Sara Duterte, who was elected in

2022 File:2022 collage V1.png, Clockwise, from top left: Road junction at Yamato-Saidaiji Station several hours after the assassination of Shinzo Abe; 2022 Sri Lankan protests, Anti-government protest in Sri Lanka in front of the Presidential Secretari ...

. Lakas–CMD was founded in 2008, after the original Lakas–CMD party merged with the

Kabalikat ng Malayang Pilipino The Kabalikat ng Malayang Pilipino (KAMPI), formerly known as the Kabalikat ng Mamamayang Pilipino, was a political party in the Philippines. It is the main party of former President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo. In June 2008, Kampi merged into the Lak ...

(KAMPI), forming Lakas Kampi CMD. The party later reverted to its original name and removed KAMPI after many of its members defected to the

National Unity Party The National Unity Party, National United Party, Party of National Unity or National Unity Front may refer to: * National United Party of Afghanistan (founded 2003) * National Unity Party (Albania) * National United Party (Armenia), defunct * Nati ...

(NUP). After the 2010 elections, the party was split into both the majority and minority blocs. By

2013 File:2013 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: Edward Snowden becomes internationally famous for leaking classified NSA wiretapping information; Typhoon Haiyan kills over 6,000 in the Philippines and Southeast Asia; The Dhaka garment fa ...

, Lakas supported most candidates of the opposition coalition

United Nationalist Alliance The United Nationalist Alliance (UNA; ) is a political party in the Philippines. It was created as a multi-party electoral alliance replacing the former United Opposition (UNO) coalition for the 2013 midterm elections, before it was launche ...

in the 2013 Senate election, although the party was still split. After the

2016 elections The following elections occurred in the year 2016. Africa Benin Republic * 2016 Beninese presidential election 6 March 2016 Cape Verde * 2016 Cape Verdean presidential election 2 October 2016 Chad * 2016 Chadian presidential election 10 ...

, the party joined the majority bloc led by PDP–Laban, the party of the winner of the presidential election, Rodrigo Duterte. In the 2019 elections, the party joined the

Hugpong ng Pagbabago Hugpong ng Pagbabago (HNP; ) is a regional political party and former political alliance in the Philippines. Formed in 2018 by Sara Duterte, the party was established in support of President Rodrigo Duterte's administration, and was the administrat ...

alliance. After the 2022 elections, Lakas won the vice presidency and replaced PDP–Laban as the largest party in Congress, leading the majority bloc.

History

Origins

After the Hello Garci scandal, the party was split into two main factions in 2006, one led by

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 ...

and another by former president Fidel V. Ramos, who had initially supported Arroyo despite the scandal but later called for her resignation. On January 16, 2008, Lakas spokesman and legal counsel Raul Lambino released a list of potential Lakas senatorial bets for 2010. Except for Parañaque Representative Eduardo Zialcita, they were not yet identified. Former House Speaker

Jose de Venecia Jr. Jose Claveria de Venecia Jr. (), also known as JDV, Joe De V or Manong Joe (born December 26, 1936), is a former Speaker of the House of Representatives of the Philippines, serving from 1992 to 1998 and from 2001 to 2008. As Speaker, he was the ...

resigned his post as president of Lakas–CMD on March 10, 2008; he rejected the proposition of former president Fidel Ramos to give him the title Chairman-emeritus. The then current House Speaker Prospero Nograles was sworn in as the new president of Lakas–CMD party and

Feliciano Belmonte Jr. Fernando Feliciano "Sonny" Racimo Belmonte Jr., KGCR (born October 2, 1936) is a Filipino politician who served as a member of the Philippine House of Representatives for the Fourth District of Quezon City from 1992 to 2001 and from 2010 to 201 ...

as vice president for Metro Manila affairs on the same day. On June 18, 2008, President Arroyo confirmed the merger of the original Lakas–Christian Muslim Democrats (Lakas–CMD) and the

(KAMPI) parties. Both parties adopted the "equity of the incumbent" principle, as the merger would account for almost 200 national and 8,000 local officials, amid Arroyo's prediction of 2010 elections victory. The party's president, Prospero Nograles, and KAMPI chairperson,

Ronaldo Puno Ronaldo Villanueva Puno (born April 25, 1948), also known as Ronnie Puno, is a campaign manager and strategist in Philippine politics. He supported the presidential bids of eventual winners Fidel V. Ramos, Joseph Estrada, and Gloria Macapagal Arro ...

, signed the covenant at the Davao City regional

caucus A caucus is a meeting of supporters or members of a specific political party or movement. The exact definition varies between different countries and political cultures. The term originated in the United States, where it can refer to a meeting ...

. Ramos announced on February 6, 2008, that the Lakas–CMD name would be retained even after the merger, and asserted that de Venecia will remain as the party's president. On August 9, 2009, de Venecia and Ramos led fifty members from Lakas in objecting to its merger with KAMPI on May 28, 2009. The faction retained de Venecia its president with Ramos as the Chairman Emeritus. Ramos refused the offer to become the Chairman Emeritus of the new party after being named in the interim party organization. De Venecia filed a resolution at the

Commission on Elections An election commission is a body charged with overseeing the implementation of electioneering process of any country. The formal names of election commissions vary from jurisdiction to jurisdiction, and may be styled an electoral commission, a c ...

to declare the merger null and void. However, the Supreme Court ultimately upheld the legality of the merger, citing the failure of de Venecia "to sufficiently show that any grave abuse of discretion was committed by the

in rendering the challenged resolution."

Majority to minority (2010–2016)

In the 2010 elections, the party suffered several losses, and was split into both the majority and minority blocs. It lost the 2010 presidential election with

Gilberto Teodoro Gilberto Eduardo Gerardo Cojuangco Teodoro Jr. (born June 14, 1964), nicknamed Gilbert or Gibo (), is a Filipino lawyer, politician and business executive who served as the Secretary of National Defense from 2007 to 2009 under President Glori ...

as its presidential nominee while only two of its candidates in the 2010 Senate election won; the two joined the

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 ...

–led majority coalition. In the 2010 House of Representatives election, it won 47% of the seats contested in the district election. However, after

Benigno Aquino III Benigno Simeon Cojuangco Aquino III (; February 8, 1960 – June 24, 2021), also known as Noynoy Aquino and Colloquialism, colloquially as PNoy, was a Filipino politician who served as the List of presidents of the Philippines, 15th presid ...

was sworn in as president on June 30, 2010, the majority of the former legislative members of Lakas were sworn as members of the reborn

, Aquino's party. Other members led by

Pablo P. Garcia Pablo Paras Garcia (September 25, 1925 – August 18, 2021) was a Filipino lawyer and politician who have been the patriarch of the Garcia political clan of Province of Cebu. He was a longtime congressman and governor. Early career A topno ...

established the neutral

in December 2010. After the split, the party's new chairman,

Edcel Lagman Edcel Castelar Lagman Sr. (, born May 1, 1942) is a Filipino human rights lawyer and politician from the province of Albay. He was elected as a member of the House in 1987 up to the present. He served as Minority Floor Leader of the House of R ...

, declared that the Lakas Kampi CMD coalition has "ceased to exist". On May 11, 2012, the party decided to revert to its original name and drop Arroyo's KAMPI from the coalition. It became one of the parties in the opposition after the 2010 elections. The party weakened following Arroyo's arrest under charges of electoral fraud in 2011 which were later dismissed, and again in 2012, on charges of misuse of $8.8 million in state lottery funds; she would later be acquitted in 2017. On February 5, 2013, senator

Bong Revilla Ramon Bautista Bong Revilla Jr. (; born Jose Mari Bautista; September 25, 1966) and commonly known as Bong Revilla, is a Filipino actor, television presenter and politician serving as a Senator since 2019, and previously from 2004 to 2016. The ...

succeeded Lagman and became the party's chairperson, while 1st district representative of Leyte,

, became the party's president. In the 2013 Senate election, the party mostly supported several candidates from the

(UNA), which counts previous Lakas members among its candidates, such as Juan Miguel Zubiri, Dick Gordon, and

Mitos Magsaysay Maria Milagros "Mitos" Habana-Magsaysay (born January 4, 1964), is a Filipino politician who served as Congresswoman of the 1st district of Zambales from 2004 to 2013, and was a senatorial candidate of the United Nationalist Alliance in the 201 ...

. Three out of nine UNA candidates were elected. In 2016, the party initially planned to field senator Revilla for the presidential election. However, he would be detained at the Philippine National Police custodial center at Camp Crame due to his alleged involvement in the

pork barrel scam The Priority Development Assistance Fund scam, also called the PDAF scam or the pork barrel scam, is a political scandal involving the alleged misuse by several members of the Congress of the Philippines of their Priority Development Assistance ...

. By August 2015, Lakas reportedly eyed to form an alliance with UNA and support vice president Jejomar Binay's candidacy for president. However, by February 2016, the party failed to reach a consensus on who to support, eventually opting not to endorse any candidate for president. The party supported the candidacy of

for vice president, who lost.

Recovery under the Duterte administration (2016–2022)

After then Davao City mayor Rodrigo Duterte won the presidential election, Lakas signed a coalition agreement with Duterte's party, PDP–Laban, on May 18, 2016, joining several other political parties in the Coalition for Change, the administration's coalition. In October 2017, Arroyo and two of her allies joined PDP–Laban. According to Arroyo, the move was done to "consolidate support for the president." In September 2018, House Minority Leader Danilo Suarez, who had rejoined Lakas, announced that the party is rebuilding to restore its dominance before Arroyo stepped down as president. On November 6, 2018, the party joined

, with Revilla joining the coalition's senatorial slate for the 2019 Senate election. Revilla was reelected, marking Lakas' return to the upper chamber. The party also won a dozen seats in the 2019 House of Representatives elections. After the 2019 elections, several politicians joined the party. Arroyo returned to the party on March 9, 2020. On November 17, 2021, Sara Duterte became the chairperson of the party, succeeding Revilla. Following her move to Lakas, she announced her candidacy for

vice president A vice president, also director in British English, is an officer in government or business who is below the president (chief executive officer) in rank. It can also refer to executive vice presidents, signifying that the vice president is on ...

in the 2022 vice presidential election, becoming the running mate of

. On November 29, 2021, the party formed the

with three other parties to support the candidacies of Marcos and Duterte. The tandem won the elections, becoming the first presidential ticket to win together since Arroyo's victory along with her running mate in

2004 2004 was designated as an International Year of Rice by the United Nations, and the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and its Abolition (by UNESCO). Events January * January 3 – Flash Airlines Flight 60 ...

Return to dominance (2022–present)

Following the

2022 Philippine general election The 2022 Philippine general election took place on May 9, 2022, for executive and legislative branches of the government – national, provincial, and local, except for the barangay officials. At the top of the ballot is the election for succe ...

, which saw Lakas winning 26 seats in the House of Representatives as well as the vice presidency, 38 politicians moved to the party, most of whom belonged to the weakening PDP–Laban. By the time the 19th Congress was opened, the party's seats in the House of Representatives increased from 12 in the 18th Congress to 64, replacing PDP–Laban as the dominant party in the lower house. Prominent members of the party were elected to various leadership positions in the lower house; Romualdez was elected as the House Speaker while Arroyo and

Isidro Ungab Isidro Tom Ungab (born May 8, 1961) is a Filipino politician, a former banker, and a former local legislator of the City of Davao. He was elected as a member of the House of Representatives of the Philippines, representing the Third District of ...

became deputy speakers.

Ideology

Lakas–CMD adheres to the

and

ideologies, adopting the same ideologies of its predecessor party, and is a member of the Centrist Democrats International (CDI). The party also advocates for a shift from the present presidential system to a parliamentary form of government through constitutional amendments and through establishing peace talks with Muslim separatists and communist rebels. Lakas–CMD has always focused on economic growth and development, stronger ties with the United States, creation of jobs, and strong cooperation between the executive and legislative branches of government. The party is distinct in its ecumenical inclusion of Muslim leaders in its political alliance. The party has tended to be more popular in the Mindanao provinces.

Current party officials

* President Emerita:

* National President:

* Chairperson: Sara Duterte * Co-Chairpersons: **

** Danilo Suarez **

* Secretary-General: Prospero Pichay Jr.

List of party chairpersons

* Gloria Macapagal Arroyo (2008–2009) * Gilberto Teodoro (2009–2010) * Amelita Villarosa (2010) * Gloria Macapagal Arroyo (2010–2011) * Edcel Lagman (2011–2012) * Bong Revilla, Jr. (2012–2021) * Sara Duterte (2021–present)

Candidates for Philippine general elections

2010

Presidential ticket

Gilbert Teodoro Gilberto Eduardo Gerardo Cojuangco Teodoro Jr. (born June 14, 1964), nicknamed Gilbert or Gibo (), is a Filipino lawyer, politician and business executive who served as the Secretary of National Defense (Philippines), Secretary of National Def ...

for president – lost * Edu Manzano for vice president – lost

For senator

Silvestre Bello III Silvestre Hernando Bello III (born June 23, 1944) is a Filipino businessman and lawyer from Isabela, who served as the Secretary of the Philippines' Department of Labor and Employment, and concurrently Presidential Adviser on the Peace Proces ...

– lost * Ramon Guico Jr. – lost * Raul Lambino – lost * Rey Langit – lost *

Lito Lapid Manuel "Lito" Mercado Lapid (; born October 25, 1955) is a Filipino actor and politician serving as a Senator since 2019, and previously from 2004 to 2016. He started his political career in Pampanga, serving as vice governor from 1992 to 1995 ...

– won *

– won

2016

For senator

* Greco Belgica (candidate for Rodrigo Duterte/ PDP–Laban and Miriam-Bongbong party) – lost * Romeo Maganto – lost * Edu Manzano (candidate for Partido Galing at Puso and Miriam-Bongbong party) – lost *

(candidate for

and Miriam-Bongbong party) – lost

2019

For senator

(also running under

) – won *

Willie Ong Willy or Willie is a masculine, male given name, often a diminutive form of William or Wilhelm, and occasionally a nickname. It may refer to: People Given name or nickname * Willie Aames (born 1960), American actor, television director, and scre ...

– lost *

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 ...

(guest candidate from Kilusang Bagong Lipunan and Katipunan ng Demokratikong Pilipino) – lost

2022

Presidential ticket

for president (adopted candidate from the

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 ...

) – won * Sara Duterte for vice president – won

Electoral performance

Presidential elections

Vice presidential elections

Legislative elections

Senate

House of Representatives

Current members, 18th Congress

House of Representatives

District Representatives

* Majority leader

(Leyte, D1) * Deputy Speaker Prospero Pichay, Jr. (Surigao del Sur, D2) * Juan Miguel Arroyo (Pampanga, D2) * Christopher de Venecia (Pangasinan, D4) *

Ramon Guico III Ramon “Mon-Mon” Velicaria Guico III (born March 19, 1975) is a Filipino politician who is the 31st and current Governor of Pangasinan since his inauguration in 2022. Prior to his governorship, he has served as representative for Pangasinan' ...

(Pangasinan, D5) * Aleta Suarez (Quezon, D3) * Vincent Frasco (Cebu, D5) * Paz Radaza (Lapu lapu City, LD) * Marilou Arroyo (Negros Occidental, D5) * Christian Unabia (Misamis Oriental D1) * Fredenil Castro (Capiz, D2) * J.F. Felipe Nograles (Rizal, D4-Montalban) * Hector Sanchez (Catanduanes LD) * Roger Mercado (Southern Leyte, D2) * Gerardo Espina, Jr. (Biliran LD) * Geraldine Roman (Bataan, D1) * Leonardo Babasa, Jr. (Zamboanga del Sur D2) * Wilter Palma II (Zamboanga Sibugay D2)

Allied Partylist Representatives

Rodante Marcoleta Rodante Dizon Marcoleta (born July 29, 1953) is a Filipino politician serving as the party-list representative for SAGIP since 2016. He is a former House Deputy Speaker of the 18th Congress from 2019 to 2022. A successful member of the reli ...

(Sagip) * Yedda Romualdez (Tingog Sinirangan) * Mike Defensor (AnaKalusugan) * Sonny Lagon (Ako Bisaya) * Alfredo Garbin ( Ako Bicol) * Elizalde Co ( Ako Bicol) * Ana Marie Villaraza-Suarez (Alona) * Adriano Ebcas (Ako Padayon Pilipino) * Romeo Momo (CWS) * Jose Gay Padiernos (Galing sa Puso P * Presley de Jesus (PHILRECA) * Sergio Dagooc ( APEC) * Alfred delos Santos (

Ang Probinsyano ''FPJ's Ang Probinsyano'' (lit. ''FPJ's The Provincial Man''; abbreviated as ''FPJAP'' and internationally known as ''Brothers'') is a 2015 Philippine action drama television series under ABS-CBN Entertainment replacing '' Nathaniel''. Bas ...

) * Jose Teves, Jr. (TGP)

Notes

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Lakas-CMD 2008 establishments in the Philippines Centrist parties in the Philippines Christian democratic parties in Asia Conservative parties in the Philippines Federalist parties Islamic democratic political parties Political parties established in 2008