Early results showed Ferdinand ("Bongbong") Marcos Jr, son of the late dictator, was on track to win Monday's Philippine presidential election by a large margin, after a campaign run in tandem with Sara Duterte, the daughter of President Rodrigo Duterte.
Partial and unofficial results representing 77 per cent of nationwide election returns showed Mr Marcos had won more than 25 million votes, putting him on course to head an administration that would unite two of the country's leading political dynasties.
This was more than double the nearly 12 million won by Leni Robredo, Mr Marcos's closest rival, a progressive candidate who promised a break with the country's increasingly authoritarian governance. Sara Duterte was leading her nearest vice-presidential rival, Kiko Pangilinan, by an even larger margin.
However, Monday’s election was marred by malfunctions in vote counting machines that left many Filipinos queueing for hours or unable to cast their ballots.
Participate, a coalition of non-governmental organisations and academic institutions, said the voting glitches had “led to many Filipinos being unable to cast their vote and possibly being disenfranchised”.
It said that as of 7pm on Monday, there were still long queues at polling statkions in many parts of the country. “Many of these voters have been waiting in line for 5 to 10 hours to cast their vote.”
Late on Monday, Mr Marcos issued a video “statement of gratitude” to supporters, but stopped short of declaring victory, saying the counting of votes was not yet done.
If Mr Marcos (64) is confirmed as winner, it will mark the political rehabilitation of a family that ran one of Asia’s most notorious dictatorships. It would also lift the fortunes of Sara Duterte (43), who outpolled all competitors, including Mr Marcos, for the presidency before deciding to run alongside him.
Ms Robredo ( 57), narrowly defeated Marcos for the vice-presidency in the election that brought Rodrigo Duterte to power in 2016 and was a vocal critic during the latter's term. Her campaign won enthusiastic grassroots support on a platform of restoring trust in government and lifting the economy.
Careful campaign
Earlier on Monday at a polling station in Quezon City, part of greater Manila, people queued around the block to vote, some wearing the red of Mr Marcos's campaign or the pink of Robredo's.
"The country deserves better governance," said business owner Winston Manabat, who was voting for Robredo and believed she could win.
Kenneth Lim, a technician, said he was supporting Marcos because "he will bring change in our country, in the economy". He said: "I think he will do like his dad."
Analysts said Mr Marcos's popularity had been helped by a careful campaign to reframe his father's dictatorship as a golden age of prosperity, even though billions of dollars were looted from state funds and the Philippines suspended debt payments during his rule.
The Marcos family fled to Hawaii in 1986 after facing the "People Power" mass protests and Ferdinand died there in 1989, But Imelda Marcos, the dictator's widow, Marcos Jr and his sister Imee Marcos returned to the Philippines and have since rebuilt their political base.
Victims of the Marcos regime have tried unsuccessfully to block Mr Marcos’s candidacy by petitioning the country’s elections commission on the grounds of a past tax conviction.
A group of more than 1,400 Catholic priests calling themselves Clergy for the Moral Choice endorsed Ms Robredo, deploring what they called “fake, deceptive and manipulative claims that aim to revise the history of our country”. – Copyright The Financial Times Limited 2022