MANILA, Philippines – The Commission on Elections (Comelec) declared Akbayan a winner in the 2022 elections, sealing the return to the House of Representatives of a political formation that has branded itself as the main party of the opposition for the 2025 midterm elections.
The poll body made official on Wednesday, September 25, the election victory of Akbayan, allowing its first nominee — LGBTQ+ rights advocate and former youth commissioner Perci Cendaña — to have a seat in the lower chamber.
The proclamation came after the Supreme Court upheld the Comelec’s cancellation of the registration papers of An Waray due to violation of the party-list law. Akbayan, which was one rank shy of winning a seat in the 2022 party-list race, moved up a notch because of the ruling.
“Our victory is not a product of legal technicalities but the result of the hard work of our members, supporters, partners, and allies in bringing our brand of leadership and governance back to Congress,” Akbayan President Rafaela David said.
“It is a validation of the work of progressive, democratic and reform-oriented forces to rein in the abuses and counter the excesses committed during the previous administration,” she added.
Even though Akbayan only has less than a year left to serve, its comeback story is no small triumph.
The democratic socialist party, which was among the first winners of the inaugural party-list race in the Philippines in 1998, was a force to be reckoned with every election season, peaking in 2004 when it secured the maximum three seats allowed under the law.
Akbayan, which supported the presidency of Benigno Aquino III, lost steam under the administration of his successor Rodrigo Duterte, who ostracized individuals and entities closely identified with his predecessor. The group had its first election loss in 2019, and then suffered its second straight defeat two years ago.
Under the party-list law, groups that fail to obtain two percent of the total votes cast in two consecutive elections may have its registration nullified. Akbayan’s belated victory is a critical lifeline to the group which was at risk of having its name removed from the ballots in 2025.
Akbayan is the home base of Senator Risa Hontiveros, the only member of the opposition to win a seat in the upper chamber in the 2022 elections.
Akbayan has positioned itself as the main opposition party in 2025. It has yet to unveil its senatorial slate to counter the administration ticket of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., but is seen to endorse potential candidacies of lawyer Chel Diokno, and former senators Francis “Kiko” Pangilinan and Bam Aquino.
Its return to the House adds a number to the chamber’s opposition, which has been decimated to the three-member Makabayan bloc and a handful of Liberal Party members since Marcos assumed office.
Akbayan’s entry also comes as talks of impeachment against Vice President Sara Duterte grip the House of Representatives. – Rappler.com