A blessed morning ladies and gentle men

I am Lester Ibale from Group 7.

Today we are going to discuss the voting process here in the Philippines, but first let me introduce our
members. Group 7 is led by

Leader:
Ms. Faye Irapta

Our Video Editor: kung sino man sya

And of course our Members:

Kate Hernadez
Joana Jesalva
Anne Guillermo
Patrick Hizon
Kenji Katada
Jazmine D. Jasmin

Now before we proceed to out discussion let’s go through our objectives.

1. know the history of election and voting process in the country.

2. Know the guidelines, rules, and regulation of our voting system.
3. Students appreciate how each of their votes are important in an election.
4. To always vote wisely.

We’ve read and saw leaders rise and fall throughout history. Election has been there since the
Spaniards and Americans colonized the Philippines. From natives electing cabeza de barngay which
always came from principalia or the ruling class, to the inauguration of the first republic in 1899, up to
the first presidential election by popular vote in 1935. And now we have our 17th president. We divide
the power to several people who promised to serve and protect our country.

There were a few attempts to nationally elect local officials during the Spanish colonial period. Following
the defeat of Spain in the Spanish–American War and the Philippines later in the Philippine–American
War, the Captaincy General of the Philippines and the First Philippine Republic were replaced by the
Insular Government of the Philippine Islands (which was established by the United States), multiple had
been elections held throughout peaceful areas of the country for provincial and local officials.

During the First Philippine Republic, an attempt was made to elect a national legislature but the former
did not control the whole Philippine archipelago so no nationwide election could be held. The first fully
national election for a fully elected legislative body was in 1907 for the Philippine Assembly, the elected
chamber of the bicameral Philippine Legislature during the American colonial period. Starting in 1909,
periodic local and Philippine Assembly elections were done concurrently until 1916, until the Jones Law
reorganized the Philippine Legislature to the Senate and the House of Representatives, both now
popularly elected. This setup continued until the Tydings–McDuffie Act authorized the then U.S.
territory to draft a constitution. The ensuing 1935 constitution instituted the Commonwealth of the
Philippines, and with it the presidency, vice presidency, and the unicameral National Assembly, then
elections were done for these offices later that year.

The National Assembly amended the constitution, reconstituting a bicameral Congress, in 1941. The first
elections under this setup was done later that year. World War II intervened, and the Japanese
occupation of the Philippines led to the creation of the Second Philippine Republic, with elections done
in 1943 for its own National Assembly. In 1945, the Americans defeated the Japanese, President Jose P.
Laurel declared the dissolution of the Second Republic, and the Commonwealth was reestablished.
Commonwealth elections meant for 1945 were done in April 1946, and independence was granted on
July 4, 1946.

From 1947 to 1971, there were biennial elections: every two years, eight out of 24 senators were
elected (this setup started in 1951, with 16, then 8 senators elected in 1946 and 1947, respectively), and
for every four years starting in 1949, the presidency, vice presidency and the entire House of
Representatives were at stake, while for every four years starting 1947, local offices were at stake.

On September 23, 1972, President Ferdinand Marcos declared martial law. The constitutional
convention, which had earlier been elected in 1970, submitted its draft constitution. A plebiscite
approved this constitution in 1973. A series of referendums consolidated Marcos's rule, and the first
local elections were done in 1975. The first parliamentary election to the unicameral Batasang
Pambansa, the national parliament, was done in 1978. The first presidential election under the 1973
constitution was done in 1981. A special "snap" presidential election was held in 1986, with Marcos
being declared as the winner. There were allegations of massive fraud, and the People Power Revolution
drove Marcos from power.

Corazon Aquino succeeded Marcos as president. A new constitution was approved in a plebiscite in
1987. Legislative elections were done later that year, then for every three years thereafter in 1992.
Unlike in the 1941 amendments to the 1935 constitution, 12 senators, all members of the House of
Representatives, and local officials are to be elected every three years; 24 senators were elected in 1987
and 1992, and 12 were subsequently elected starting in 1995. The president and vice president now
have six-year terms, and were first elected in 1992. Party-list representatives were first elected in 1998.
This is the current setup.

So how exactly our election or voting system start?

Let me call on Ms. Kate Hernandez and Ms. Joana Jeselva to discuss the definition of election.