Philippine Politics and Governance

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Decentralization and Local Governance

Elections and Political Parties

Electoral System depends on the political culture of a nation and it varies
depending on the form of government, however, not all presidential
government has the same electoral system. The electoral framework is highly
important in the shaping and developing of political parties which in turn
will select the candidates who will be chosen by the people to handle key
positions in the government.
Their easy access and familiarity to the community makes them more
reliable.
In the module, learners are expected to…

1. Describe the nature of elections and political parties in the Philippines;

2. Identify the types of electoral systems;

3. Assess the implications of the type of electoral systems on politics and

governance;
4. Analyze the nature of elections and political parties in the Philippines.

Philippine Electoral System

Philippine Electoral System has adopted a plurality or first-past-the-post

method. Candidates in all positions who got the highest number of votes are
declared winners. This method of election has been practiced since the
independence from the United States; however, there are questions and
issues as to whether this type of system reflects the choice of the people as
the principle of majority is ruled out in this kind of electoral system; a
candidate does not have majority vote on this method. In the past or recent
elections, no candidate has ever achieved a majority vote and support from
the people.

This Electoral System has created a lot of problems in the Philippines. It

resulted into minority leadership which in turn can be easily challenged by
people who did not support or vote for a particular government official.

Aceron, (2009) has stated that a plurality electoral system when combined
with multi-party system is problematic. Aceron further conclude that a
plurality system works best in a two-party system just like in the United
States. If it is applied in a multi-party system just like in the Philippines its
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 result does not guarantee a solid majority and a unified populace. Aceron
(2009) further added that there are preconditions that govern a successful
application of the plurality/ majority formula that arguably does not exist in
the Philippines, these are:
 Homogenous society
 Fundamental political consensus among population in regards to the
majority rules
 The probability that the minority can become a majority

Effects of Philippine Electoral System

 Minority leadership
 Leaders are susceptible to opposition
 Leaders do not show allegiance to the party
 Coalitions are not common or lack of coalition building
 Proportional representation does not exist
 The link between the results of the elections and the configuration of
leadership in government is diluted (Aceron, 2009)

Party System
Every political leader in the world is associated with a political party.
Political parties are considered the training and breeding ground of future
leaders. Political parties are tasked to screen candidate selection, formation
of political alliances, political objectives and vision in response to problems
faced by the nation and interest confluence.

In the Philippines, political parties do not have a strong political alliance that
is maintained even after or before elections. Alliances of members are
temporary and usually based on financial support that a party member could
get from his/her membership rather than ideological interest. Membership
in the political party is like membership in a sports team in which the player
can be pirated or transferred to another team depending on financial offer.
The life expectancy of membership and the political party itself is very short.

This type of political party system can be blamed on the political culture of
politicians and political leaders as well as the voters; Filipino voters do not
vote candidates based on party affiliation or party political platforms, their
choice of candidate is based on family name, popularity, and financial offer of
candidates. Politicians do not even use in their campaign slogan the platform
of the party but craft their own motto that can be easily recalled and
remembered by voters.
 Philippine Politics and Governance
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Decentralization and Local Governance

The Nature and Practice of Parties

What defines a party? It is a party if its representatives represent the true

platform of the party and it has well-maintained machinery in selecting
political candidates not just for a particular election season but in every
electoral process. It has permanent membership and has capable of financial
support to the members. In addition, Lawson, (1989) has stated that it
nominates candidates to stand for its name; and it exercises power on behalf
of the general public. However, Meyer, (2007) strictly defined political party
as large organizations with a certain amount of centralization and presence
across the country.
Heywood (2002) also provides the following list of functions that political
parties must perform:
1) Representation – the capacity to respond and articulate the views of both
members and voters.
2) Elite Formation and Recruitment – the ability to mold the political elite
tasked to govern the body politic.
3) Goal Formulation – the development of programs of government with a
view of attracting popular support.
4) Interest Articulation and Aggregation – the task of combining and
harmonizing different demands and expressing them into coherent policy
formulation.
5) Socialization and Mobilization – the formation of a national agenda and
the creation of a public discourse to raise political awareness and build the
necessary values and attitudes that would constitute a larger political
culture.
6) Organization of Government – the power given to a political party that
gains the necessary votes to constitute the governmental elite, filling
governmental posts with elements from the party ranks.

Party List System

Party List System was conceived under the 1987 Constitution and was part of
the adoption of multi-party system. The idea of party list system is to allow
marginalized group or sector of society that is not represented by the
political parties or parties that filled candidates in the elections. Party list
system is also a form of proportional representation in the government
through the lower house.

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 Unlike political parties where the name of the candidates were the ones
dominating the campaign, party list groups do not campaign on the basis of
the name of their candidates rather based on the organization or sector they
are representing. In voting for the party list, voters do not write the name of
the party representative but the name of the party itself.
The declaration stressed in the 1987 Constitution was that party list system
will give underrepresented or marginalized sector of society a chance to
obtain representation in the House of Representatives so that they could be
able to participate in the formulation of laws that could be of value to the
sector they are representing and the nation as a whole.
Problems of the Party List System
 Representatives did not come from the sector they were representing
 Party list groups continue to split in an effort to gain more seats in the
lower house
 Party list groups lack financial support from the sector or
organizations they were representing
 Party list is often used as a backdoor to enter politics or to maintain
seat in the lower house
 Party list is used by politicians to gain more support in the house
 Party list groups do not constitute the marginalized sector
 Party list groups lack a well-defined constituencies

Activities and Exercises

1. While the Philippine electoral system is good sign of democratic system,

what are its weaknesses?
2. How can the political party system affect the decision-making of the voters?
3. What are the problems of the party list system?

Do a research about one existing and official party list in the Philippines.
Determine their mission-vision and make a list of their accomplishments.
 Philippine Politics and Governance
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Decentralization and Local Governance

Glossary

elections- a democratic process which is a major source of political recruitment, a

means of making government and of transferring government, a guarantee of
representation, and a major determinant of government policy.

political party- organized for the purpose of winning government power by

electoral or other means

References

B. Ponton& P. Gill. (1982). Politics, Introduction. New York: Basil Blackwell

Tuibeo, A. (1998). Politics and governance: A critical introduction. Makati:
Grandwater Publication.
Magstadt, T. &Schoten, P. (1988). Understanding politics: ideas, institutions,
& issue. New York: St. Martin’s Press

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