The 1998 Philippine presidential and vice presidential elections were held on May 11, 1998. In the presidential election,
Vice President
A vice president or 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 vi ...
Joseph Estrada
Joseph Ejercito Estrada (; born Jose Marcelo Ejercito; April 19, 1937), also known by the nickname Erap, is a Filipino politician and former actor, who served as the 13th president of the Philippines from 1998 until his resignation in 2001. ...
won a six-year term as
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:
Arts and entertainment Film and television
*'' Præsident ...
by a
landslide victory
A landslide victory is an election result in which the winning Candidate#Candidates in elections, candidate or political party, party achieves a decisive victory by an overwhelming margin, securing a very large majority of votes or seats far beyo ...
. In the vice-presidential race,
Senator
A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or Legislative chamber, chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the Ancient Rome, ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior ...
Gloria Macapagal Arroyo
Maria Gloria Macaraeg Macapagal-Arroyo (; born April 5, 1947), often referred to as PGMA or GMA, is a Filipino academic and politician who served as the 14th president of the Philippines from Presidency of Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, 2001 to 2010 ...
won a six-year term as
Vice President
A vice president or 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 vi ...
, also by a landslide victory. This was the third election where both the president and vice president came from different parties.
Background
At the tail-end of the presidency of
Fidel V. Ramos
Fidel Valdez Ramos (; March 18, 1928 – July 31, 2022), popularly known as FVR, was a Filipino general and politician who served as the 12th president of the Philippines from 1992 to 1998. He was the only career military officer to reached ...
, several politicians began jockeying for the nomination of his
Lakas–NUCD–UMDP party. This included
House Speaker Jose de Venecia Jr.,
National Defense Secretary Renato de Villa
Renato "Rene" Salud de Villa (born July 20, 1935) is a Filipino former police and military officer and government official. He served as Chief of Philippine Constabulary, Director-General of the Integrated National Police, and Chief of Staff o ...
, and
Cebu Governor Lito Osmeña.
The Lakas nominee was widely expected to face
Vice President
A vice president or 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 vi ...
Joseph Estrada
Joseph Ejercito Estrada (; born Jose Marcelo Ejercito; April 19, 1937), also known by the nickname Erap, is a Filipino politician and former actor, who served as the 13th president of the Philippines from 1998 until his resignation in 2001. ...
, who had been leading candidate in various opinion polls. Estrada had earlier declared in 1992 that he would not run for president, stating his intention to retire upon reaching the age of 60 in 1998, but he later recanted this decision.
Senator
A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or Legislative chamber, chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the Ancient Rome, ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior ...
Miriam Defensor Santiago
Miriam Palma Defensor-Santiago (June 15, 1945 – September 29, 2016) was a Filipino scholar, academic, lawyer, judge, author, stateswoman, and politician who served in all three branches of the Philippine government: judicial, executive, and l ...
, who believed she had been cheated out of the presidency by Ramos in
1992
1992 was designated as International Space Year by the United Nations.
Events January
* January 1 – Boutros Boutros-Ghali of Egypt replaces Javier Pérez de Cuéllar of Peru as United Nations Secretary-General.
* January 6
** The Republ ...
, was also expected to run again.
Former
First Lady Imelda Marcos
Imelda Romualdez Marcos (; born Imelda Remedios Visitación Trinidad Romuáldez; July 2, 1929) is a Filipino politician who was First Lady of the Philippines from 1965 to 1986, wielding significant political power after her husband Ferdinand ...
was likewise seen as a potential presidential contender. She banked on the support of loyalists of her husband, deposed president
Ferdinand Marcos
Ferdinand Emmanuel Edralin Marcos Sr. (September 11, 1917 – September 28, 1989) was a Filipino lawyer, politician, dictator, and Kleptocracy, kleptocrat who served as the tenth president of the Philippines from 1965 to 1986. He ruled the c ...
.
Senator
Leticia Ramos-Shahani
Leticia Valdez Ramos-Shahani (September 30, 1929 – March 20, 2017) was a Filipino senator, diplomat, and writer.
She was the younger sister of Fidel V. Ramos, the 12th president of the Philippines.
Early life
She was born on September ...
initially launched her presidential campaign on July 6, 1997, in
Pasig City with Lito Osmeña as her running mate. However, she eventually decided to withdraw from the race and instead run for
governor of Pangasinan.
Senator
Gloria Macapagal Arroyo
Maria Gloria Macaraeg Macapagal-Arroyo (; born April 5, 1947), often referred to as PGMA or GMA, is a Filipino academic and politician who served as the 14th president of the Philippines from Presidency of Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, 2001 to 2010 ...
, who had topped the
1995 Senate election, was also considered a strong presidential contender, founding
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 int ...
with
Tito Sotto
Vicente Castelo Sotto, III (; born August 24, 1948), is a Filipino politician and television personality who is a Senate of the Philippines, senator-elect of the Philippines. He is the longest-serving senator in the history of the upper chamb ...
, who himself topped the
1992 Senate election, widely seen as her likely running mate.
Senator
Raul Roco, who had built a noteworthy Senate career by this point, gained strong backing from the youth through his own party,
Aksyon Demokratiko.
The Lakas convention ultimately nominated de Venecia, Ramos' handpicked successor, for president. This led de Villa and Osmeña to bolt from Lakas and set up their own parties. De Venecia picked Arroyo as his vice presidential running mate.
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. For example, while the political systems ...
nominated
Manila Mayor Alfredo Lim
Alfredo "Fred" Siojo Lim (; December 21, 1929 – August 8, 2020) was a Filipino politician, police officer and lawyer who served as a Senate of the Philippines, Senator of the Philippines from 2004 to 2007, He also served as the 20th Mayor of ...
for president. Meanwhile, the
Laban ng Demokratikong Pilipino
Laban ng Demokratikong Pilipino (LDP; ) is a political party in the Philippines founded by Ramon Mitra Jr. and Peping Cojuangco. LDP was more commonly referred to as Laban during its early years.
History
Early years and formation
In Septembe ...
,
Nationalist People's Coalition
The Nationalist People's Coalition (NPC) is a conservatism, conservative political party in the Philippines which was founded in 1992 by presidential candidate Danding Cojuangco.
History
Formation
In 1990, amid political and economic unce ...
and Estrada's own
Partido ng Masang Pilipino (the forerunner of the
Pwersa ng Masang Pilipino
The Pwersa ng Masang Pilipino (), formerly Partido ng Masang Pilipino (), is a populist political party in the Philippines. It is the political party of former Philippine President Joseph E. Estrada. In the May 1998 presidential election, ...
) established an electoral alliance known as
Laban ng Makabayang Masang Pilipino
The Laban ng Makabayang Masang Pilipino () was the umbrella political opposition coalition during the 1998 Philippine general election that led to the election of then Vice President Joseph Estrada as President of the Philippines. It was the la ...
. Estrada chose Senator
Edgardo Angara
Edgardo Javier Angara (, September 24, 1934 – May 13, 2018) was a Filipino lawyer and politician who served as Senate President from 1993 to 1995. Angara had the second longest tenure in the history of the Senate, serving four terms and a ...
of LDP as his running mate.
Weeks before election day, Marcos withdrew from the race. Estrada had widened his lead over the other candidates by this point.
Candidates
Lakas nomination
There were four candidates who sought the nomination of
Lakas–NUCD: Jose de Venecia, Renato de Villa, Lito Osmeña, and
Bulacan Governor Roberto Pagdanganan. De Villa was confident he would be selected by the party, as he, like President Ramos, was a former constabulary general. However, during the official Lakas party meeting, the presidential nomination was awarded to de Venecia. Following this, de Villa bolted from the party and formed
Partido para sa Demokratikong Reporma
The Partido para sa Demokratikong Reporma (PDR, ), commonly known as Partido Reporma, is a political party in the Philippines.
History
1998 elections: de Villa for President
It was founded by former Defense Secretary Renato de Villa when ...
, while Osmeña established
Probinsya Muna Development Initiative.
Opinion polling
Opinion polling
An opinion poll, often simply referred to as a survey or a poll, is a human research survey of public opinion from a particular sample. Opinion polls are usually designed to represent the opinions of a population by conducting a series of que ...
, commonly known as "surveys" in the Philippines were administered primarily by
Social Weather Stations
The Social Weather Stations or SWS is a social research institution in the Philippines founded in August 1985. It is a private, non-stock, nonprofit institution. It is the foremost public-opinion polling body in the Philippines. As an independen ...
in 1998.
The tables below graph the last three surveys conducted.
For president
For vice president
Results
The
10th Congress canvassed the votes in
joint session
A joint session or joint convention is, most broadly, when two normally separate decision-making groups meet, often in a special session or other extraordinary meeting, for a specific purpose.
Most often it refers to when both houses of a bicam ...
for a number of days before declaring Estrada and Arroyo as the winners; with Senate President
Neptali Gonzales and Speaker De Venecia announcing the victors.
While the official canvassing did not start a fortnight after Election Day, the
National Movement for Free Elections (NAMFREL) held a parallel and unofficial quick count which was released days after the election and was updated at irregular intervals. NAMFREL based their tally from the seventh copy of the election returns given to them.
In theory, the totals for the official canvassing (derived from the certificates of canvass, which are then derived from the election returns) and the completed NAMFREL quick count should be equal.
For president
Estrada carried the majority of the provinces, his hometown of
San Juan City, and
Metro Manila
Metropolitan Manila ( ), commonly shortened to Metro Manila and formally the National Capital Region (NCR; ), is the capital region and largest List of metropolitan areas in the Philippines, metropolitan area of the Philippines. Located ...
.
De Venecia carried his home province of
Pangasinan
Pangasinan, officially the Province of Pangasinan (, ; ; ), is a coastal Provinces of the Philippines, province in the Philippines located in the Ilocos Region of Luzon. Its capital is Lingayen, Pangasinan, Lingayen while San Carlos, Pangasi ...
as well as
Siquijor
Siquijor ( , ), officially the Province of Siquijor (; ), is a Philippines, Philippine Provinces of the Philippines, island province (List of islands of the Philippines, the third smallest in the country, in terms of population and land area) ...
, Roco carried his home province of
Camarines Sur
Camarines Sur (; ), officially the Province of Camarines Sur (Central Bikol language, Bikol: ''Probinsya kan Habagatan na Camarines''; ), is a Provinces of the Philippines, province in the Philippines located in the Bicol Region on Luzon. Its ca ...
and the rest of the
Bicol Region
The Bicol Region, designated as Region V, is an administrative region of the Philippines. It comprises six Provinces of the Philippines, provinces, four on the Bicol Peninsula (the luzon#Southeastern Luzon, southeastern end of Luzon): Albay, Ca ...
(excluding
Masbate
Masbate, officially the Province of Masbate (Masbateño language, Masbateño: ''Probinsya san Masbate''; ), is an island Provinces of the Philippines, province in the Philippines located near the midsection of the nation's archipelago. Its provi ...
), and Osmeña got his foothold over his home province of
Cebu
Cebu ( ; ), officially the Province of Cebu (; ), is a province of the Philippines located in the Central Visayas region, and consists of a main island and 167 surrounding islands and islets. The coastal zone of Cebu is identified as a ...
and other provinces in the South.
Other candidates also carried their home provinces such as De Villa of
Batangas
Batangas, officially the Province of Batangas ( ), is a first class province of the Philippines located in the southwestern part of Luzon in the Calabarzon region. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 2,908,494 people, making ...
, Enrile of
Cagayan
Cagayan ( ), officially the Province of Cagayan (; ; ; isnag language, Isnag: ''Provinsia nga Cagayan''; ivatan language, Ivatan: ''Provinsiya nu Cagayan''; ; ), is a Provinces of the Philippines, province in the Philippines located in the Cag ...
, and Defensor Santiago of
Iloilo Province
Iloilo ( ; ), officially the Province of Iloilo (; ; ; ), is a Provinces of the Philippines, province in the Philippines located in the Western Visayas Regions of the Philippines, region. Its capital and largest city is Iloilo City, the regio ...
, as well as the neighboring province of
Guimaras
Guimaras (), officially the Province of Guimaras (; ), is an island province in the Philippines located in the Western Visayas region. The capital is Jordan, while the largest local government unit is the municipality of Buenavista. The provin ...
. Lim was the only major candidate who did not carry any provinces (with the exception of
Batanes
Batanes, officially the Province of Batanes (; Ilocano: ''Probinsia ti Batanes''; , ), is an archipelagic province in the Philippines, administratively part of the Cagayan Valley region. It is the northernmost province in the Philippines, an ...
) and failed to capture his hometown of
Manila
Manila, officially the City of Manila, is the Capital of the Philippines, capital and second-most populous city of the Philippines after Quezon City, with a population of 1,846,513 people in 2020. Located on the eastern shore of Manila Bay on ...
.
NAMFREL quick count
Take note that
Manuel Morato
Manuel "Manoling" Lim Morato (November 17, 1933 – July 30, 2021) was a Filipino politician and television host who previously served as chairperson of both the Movie and Television Review and Classification Board (MTRCB) and the Philippine ...
had a higher number of votes in the NAMFREL quick count than in the official congressional canvass.
*Difference from the NAMFREL quick count from the official congressional canvass.
Voter demographics
Source: Exit polls conducted by
Social Weather Stations
The Social Weather Stations or SWS is a social research institution in the Philippines founded in August 1985. It is a private, non-stock, nonprofit institution. It is the foremost public-opinion polling body in the Philippines. As an independen ...
on May 12, 100% total (margin of error: 1.3%)
For vice-president
Arroyo also carried most of the provinces including her home province of
Pampanga
Pampanga, officially the Province of Pampanga (; ; ), is a province in Central Luzon in the Philippines. Lying on the northern shore of Manila Bay, Pampanga is bordered by Tarlac to the north, Nueva Ecija to the northeast, Bulacan to the east, ...
. Other candidates also carried their home provinces such as Angara of
Aurora
An aurora ( aurorae or auroras),
also commonly known as the northern lights (aurora borealis) or southern lights (aurora australis), is a natural light display in Earth's sky, predominantly observed in high-latitude regions (around the Arc ...
, and
Quezon
Quezon, officially the Province of Quezon () and historically known as Tayabas, is a Provinces of the Philippines, province in the Philippines located in the Calabarzon Regions of the Philippines, region on Luzon. Lucena, a highly urbanized ci ...
being mother province, Orbos of
Pangasinan
Pangasinan, officially the Province of Pangasinan (, ; ; ), is a coastal Provinces of the Philippines, province in the Philippines located in the Ilocos Region of Luzon. Its capital is Lingayen, Pangasinan, Lingayen while San Carlos, Pangasi ...
, Tatad of
Catanduanes
Catanduanes (; ), officially the Province of Catanduanes (), is an island province located in the Bicol Region of Luzon in the Philippines. It is the 12th-largest island in the Philippines, and lies to the east of Camarines Sur, across the M ...
and Sueno of
South Cotabato
South Cotabato, officially the Province of South Cotabato, is a Provinces of the Philippines, province in the Philippines located in the Soccsksargen Regions of the Philippines, region in Mindanao. Its capital is Koronadal (also the regional cen ...
.
Only Osmeña of
Cebu
Cebu ( ; ), officially the Province of Cebu (; ), is a province of the Philippines located in the Central Visayas region, and consists of a main island and 167 surrounding islands and islets. The coastal zone of Cebu is identified as a ...
failed to capture the votes of their home provinces.
NAMFREL quick count
Take note that Reynaldo Pacheco had a higher number of votes in the NAMFREL quick count than the official congressional canvass.
*Difference from the NAMFREL quick count from the official congressional canvass.
Voter demographics
Source: Exit polls conducted by
Social Weather Stations
The Social Weather Stations or SWS is a social research institution in the Philippines founded in August 1985. It is a private, non-stock, nonprofit institution. It is the foremost public-opinion polling body in the Philippines. As an independen ...
on May 12, 100% total (margin of error: 1.4%)
See also
*
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 ...
*
Politics of the Philippines
Politics in the Philippines are governed by a Separation of powers, three-branch system of government. The country is a democracy, with a President of the Philippines, president who is directly Elections in the Philippines, elected by the peop ...
*
Philippine elections
Elections in the Philippines are of several types. The president, vice-president, and the senators are elected for a six-year term, while the members of the House of Representatives, governors, vice-governors, members of the Sangguniang Pa ...
*
President of the Philippines
The president of the Philippines (, sometimes referred to as ) is the head of state, head of government and chief executive of the Philippines. The president leads the executive branch of the Philippine government and is the commander-in-ch ...
*
11th Congress of the Philippines
The 11th Congress of the Philippines (), composed of the Philippine Senate and House of Representatives, met from July 27, 1998, until June 8, 2001, during the 31-month presidency of Joseph Estrada and the first four months of Gloria Macapaga ...
Notes
References
External links
The Philippine Presidency ProjectOfficial website of the Commission on ElectionsOfficial website of the House of Representatives
{{Philippine elections
1998
1998 was designated as the ''International Year of the Ocean''.
Events January
* January 6 – The ''Lunar Prospector'' spacecraft is launched into orbit around the Moon, and later finds evidence for Lunar water, frozen water, in soil i ...
1998 elections in the Philippines
May 1998 in Asia