Ferdinand 'Bongbong' Marcos Jr, also known as 'BBM': The next Philippine president?

KNOCKING ON THE PALACE GATES: Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos, Jr. (second from right) enjoys a huge following among ardent loyalists, many of them hyperactive on social media. With his consistent messaging, Marcos Jr is about to pull off the unthinkable: a possible return through the ballot of his family to Malacanang, the seat of power in the Asian country once plundered by his father. Photo shows the Marcoses with President Rodrigo R. Duterte (centre) in the presidential palace.

CONTENDERS: Marcos Jr is one of the main contenders in the upcoming Philippine presidential vote. Though President Duterte’s daughter Sara did not file her certificate of candidacy, she can still join the race by way of substitution on or before November 15, a move allowed by Philippine election rules. The other candidates have officially filed their candidacies.

PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Former senator Ferdinand Marcos Jr. poses after filing his certificate of candidacy for next year’s presidential elections with the Commission on Elections at the Sofitel Harbor Garden Tent in Metropolitan Manila, Philippines on October 6, 2021.

“BBM”: Marcos Jr., also known by his initials “BBM” (Bongbong Marcos), is the second child and only son of former president Ferdinand Marcos Sr and former First Lady Imelda Romualdez Marcos. He has served 3 terms as governor of his home province of Ilocos Sur (till 2007) and then as a Senator (2010 to 2016).

CHARM OF MARCOSES: The Marcoses enjoy an unbroken history of strong support among voters in the north. A screengrab shows the former first lady Imelda, Marcos Jr and the latter's first born, Ferdinand Alexander "Sandro" Marcos, 27, who is also now now running for congress to represent Ilocos Norte in the Lower House.

SON OF HIS FATHER: His father Ferdinand Sr ruled for 21 years (1965 to 1986). The 1935 Constitution allowed Marcos Sr to rule for only 8 years — or 2 four-year terms. However, the strongman declared Martial Law in 1972, a year before his second term was set to end, citing the then-growing communist rebellion and the separatist war in Mindanao among the excuses. Marcos Sr then introduced his own constitution in 1973, and pursued a debt-fuelled development. Photo shows the young Marcos Jr and his father Ferdinand Sr.

SOCIAL MEDIA STAR: Marcos Jr is hugely popular, especially in northern Philippines, his family's bailiwick. On Facebook, supporters consider him the "real vice president". Videos and memes declaring his father as the “Wealthiest person on Earth” has been doing the rounds on the social network. His Wikipedia entry had 51.4 million views as of October 22, 2021.

Imelda Marcos kisses the glass coffin of her husband Ferdinand Marcos Sr.

MARCOS SR, FROM LP, to NP to KBL: His father Ferdinand Sr started off as a Liberal Party (LP) stalwart in 1947, as an assistant to then-president Manuel Roxas, before switching to Nacionalista Party (NP) in 1965, when he ran as the NP standard-bearer and won against the LP candidate, Diosdado Macapagal. Four years later, in 1969, Marcos Sr was reelected, thus becoming the first — and only — Philippine president to ever serve a second term.

SINGLE TERM MANDATED: Bongbong Marcos Jr, now 64 (born September 13, 1957), served as a politician under the Philippines’ 1987 Constitution, which bans a reelection for president.

BEATEN BY A VIRTUAL UNKNOWN IN 2016: The fate of Marcos Jr has been closely linked to Maria Leonor “Leni” Robredo since 2016. Back then, Robredo, a widow, was a virtually unknown member of the House of Representatives from Bicol, a sprawling but deeply divided region that never produced a single Philippine president. She defeated Marcos in a six-way race.

BICOL DIVIDED: In a poll taken in June 2015 for the VP race, Marcos led by a wide margin, while Robredo had only 1% support. By mid-April 2016, her rating made a huge jump — to 26%. A Pulse Asia Research survey then taken April 26-29 saw Robredo on top of the VP race, with 30% against Marcos’ 28%. Back then, three other Bicolanos also joined the VP stakes — Chiz Escudero, Gringo Honasan, and Antonio Trillanes IV, thus eroding Robredo’s hope of a solid Bicol vote. Alan Peter Cayetano’s wife is also a Bicolana. By some miracle, Robredo won in a coming-from-behind race by a slim margin against Marcos in 2016. Now, both Trillanes and Escudero have joined forces with Robredo.

LEGAL BATTLE: Marcos Jr contested the results. His camp demanded a manual recount, which the election tribunal granted. In October 2019, after a three-year dispute, the Supreme Court-sanctioned recount in 3 “pilot provinces” identified by the Marcos camp added more insult to the injury. File photo showing Marcos Jr in the Philippine Senate.

ELECTORAL PROTEST: The 3 provinces were: Negros Oriental, Iloilo and Camarines Sur. In all three court-sanctioned manual recounts, Robredo actually got more votes than was initially recorded: she got 1,510,178 votes from those three provinces vs Marcos’ 204,512 votes. In 2016, Robredo got 1,493,517 votes in these areas against Marcos’ 202,136 votes. In February 2021, the Philippine Supreme Court’s 15 magistrates unanimously voted to rubbish Marcos’ protest.

SECOND IN SEPTEMBER 2021 POLLS: In the latest presidential poll published by end-September 2021, Marcos landed second, with 15% rating; Manila Mayor Francisco “Isko Moreno” Domagoso had 13%, and Sen. Emmanuel “Manny” Pacquaio, 12%. VP Leni Robredo landed sixth, with 6%. She earlier declared she was considering a run for a local post in her home province, but decided to file her candidacy on October 7, a day after Marcos Jr filed his.

RUNNING MATE?: Marcos Jr has not picked a vice presidential running mate. He recently revealed that he had planned to adopt President Rodrigo Duterte (left) as his running mate. But Duterte later declared his intention to retire from politics after his term ends next year. Marcos Jr then said he may consider Senator Christopher Lawrence "Bong" Go (second from right), a close Duterte ally, or someone from his party. For now, Marcos Jr is keeping his cards close to his chest.