Philippines Election: Marcos Family Returns

Thirty six years after his father was ousted in a historic revolution, Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has won the election in a landslide.

• Ferdinand “BongBong” Marcos Jr., son of the former Filipino dictator has won the country’s presidential vote. His Vice President will be the current President’s daughter - Sara Duterte-Carpio.
• The Marcos family is thought to have plundered an estimated $10bn of public money, during a time when millions of Filipinos were living in extreme poverty. It seems any grievances are long forgotten.
• To understand the meteoric rebirth of the Marcos family into Filipino politics, it’s important to consider the past - a dramatic story of murder, protests, exile (and thousands of designer shoes).
• Marcos Sr. became President in 1965. In 1972 he seized total control of the Philippines; his second term was set to expire, but instead he declared martial law.
• The period that followed became a very dark time for the country - parliament was suspended, opposition politicians were arrested and censorship was imposed nationwide.
• Human rights abuses and corruption tainted the rest of Marcos’ presidency, which finally came to an end after the opposition leader was assassinated.