1946 Philippine presidential election

The Philippine presidential and vice presidential elections of 1946 were held on April 23, 1946 (pursuant to Commonwealth Act No. 725).

1946 Philippine presidential election

April 23, 1946
 
Nominee Manuel Roxas Sergio Osmeña
Party Nacionalista (Liberal wing) Nacionalista
Running mate Elpidio Quirino Eulogio Rodriguez
Popular vote 1,333,392 1,129,996
Percentage 53.94% 45.71%


President before election

Jose P. Laurel KALIBAPI and Sergio Osmeña
Nacionalista

Elected President

Manuel Roxas
Nacionalista (Liberal wing)

Background

Soon after the reconstitution of the Commonwealth government in 1945, Senators Manuel Roxas, Elpidio Quirino and their allies called for an early national election to choose the president and vice president of the Philippines, as well as the members of Congress. In December 1945, the House Insular Affairs Committee of the United States Congress approved the joint resolution setting the date of the election on not later than April 30, 1946.

Prompted by this congressional action, President Sergio Osmeña called the Philippine Congress to a three-day special session. Congress enacted Commonwealth Act No. 725, setting the date of the election on April 23, 1946. The act was signed by President Osmeña on January 5, 1946.

Candidates

Three parties presented their respective candidates for the different national elective positions. These were the Nacionalista Party, Conservative (Osmeña) Wing, the Liberal Wing of the Nacionalista Party, and the Partido Modernista. The Nacionalistas had Osmeña and Senator Eulogio Rodriguez as their candidates for president and vice president, respectively. The Modernistas chose Hilario Camino Moncado and Luis Salvador for the same positions. On the other hand, the standard bearers of the Liberals were Senators Manuel Roxas and Elpidio Quirino.

On January 3, 1946, President Osmeña announced his candidacy for President. On January 22, 1946, Eulogio Rodriguez was nominated as Osmeña's running mate for Vice President, in a convention held at Ciro's Club in Manila. According to the Manila Chronicle:

The convention opened at 10:15 in the morning when the acting secretary of the party, Vicente Farmoso, called the confab to order.

Congressman Jose C. Romero, who delivered the keynote speech accused Senate President Manuel Roxas and his followers of fanning the flames of discontent among the people, of capitalizing on the people's hardship, and of minimizing the accomplishment of the [Osmeña] Administration. These men with the Messiah complex have been the bane of the country and of the world. This is the mentality that produces Hitlers and Mussolinis, and in their desire to climb to power they even want to destroy the party which placed them where they are today.

Senator Carlos P. Garcia, who delivered the nomination speech for President Sergio Osmeña, made a long recital of Osmeña's achievements, his virtues as public official and as private citizen.

Entering the convention hall at about 7:30 p.m, President Osmeña, accompanied by the committee on notification, was greeted with rounds of cheer and applause as he ascended the platform. President Osmeña delivered his speech which was a general outline of his future plans once elected. He emphasized that as far as his party is concerned, independence is a close issue. It is definitely coming on July 4, 1946[1]

On January 19, 1946, Senator Roxas announced his candidacy for President in a convention held in Santa Ana Cabaret in Manila. According to Manila Chronicle:

...more than three thousand (by conservative estimate there were only 1,000 plus) delegates, party members and hero worshipers jammed into suburban, well known Santa Ana Cabaret (biggest in the world) to acclaim ex-katipunero and Bagong Katipunan organizer Manuel Acuña Roxas as the guidon bearer of the Nacionalista Party's Liberal Wing.

The delegates, who came from all over the Islands, met in formal convention from 10:50 am and did not break up till about 5:30 pm.

They elected 1. Mariano J. Cuenco, professional Osmeñaphobe, as temporary chairman; 2. Jose Avelino and ex-pharmacist Antonio Zacarias permanent chairman and secretary, respectively; 3. nominated forty-four candidates for senators; 4. heard the generalissimo himself deliver an oratorical masterpiece consisting of 50 per cent attacks against the (Osmeña) Administration, 50 per cent promises, pledges. Rabid Roxasites greeted the Roxas acceptance speech with hysterical applause.[2]

President Osmeña tried to prevent the split in the Nacionalista Party by offering Senator Roxas the position of Philippine Regent Commissioner to the United States but the latter turned down the offer.

As a result of the split among the members of the Nacionalista Party, owing to marked differenced of opinion on certain vital issues of which no settlement had been reached, a new political organization was born and named the Liberal Wing of the Nacionalista Party, which would later become the Liberal Party.

Results

Manuel Roxas (right) and Elpidio Quirino (left)

The election was generally peaceful and orderly except in some places where passions ran high, especially in the province of Pampanga. According to the "controversial" decision of the Electoral Tribunal of the House of Representatives on Meliton Soliman vs. Luis Taruc, Pampanga "was under the terroristic clutches and control of the Hukbalahaps. So terrorized were the people of Arayat, at one time, 200 persons abandoned their homes, their work, and their food, all their belongings in a mass evacuation to the poblacion due to fear and terror."

A total of 2,218,847 voters went to the polls to elect their President and Vice President who was to be the Commonwealth's last and the Republic's first. President Osmena chose not to actively campaign, saying the Filipinos were aware of his record of 40 years of loyal service to the country.

Four days after election day, the Liberal candidates were proclaimed victors. Roxas registered a majority of votes in 34 provinces and nine cities: Abra, Agusan, Albay, Antique, Bataan, Batanes, Batangas, Bukidnon, Bulacan, Cagayan, Camarines Norte, Camarines Sur, Capiz, Cavite, Cotabato, Ilocos Norte, Ilocos Sur, Isabela, Laguna, La Union, Leyte, Marinduque, Mindoro, Misamis Oriental, Negros Occidental, Nueva Vizcaya, Palawan, Pangasinan, Rizal, Romblon, Samar, Sorsogon, Sulu, Surigao, Tayabas, Zambales, Manila, Quezon City, Bacolod (Negros Occidental), Iloilo City (Iloilo), Baguio (Mountain Province), Zamboanga City (Zamboanga), Tagaytay City (Cavite), Cavite City (Cavite) and San Pablo City (Laguna)

Likewise, the Liberal Party won nine out of 16 contested senatorial seats.

In the House of Representatives, the Liberals achieved a majority with 50 seats won while the Nacionalistas and the Democratic Alliance were only victorious in 33 and six seats, respectively.

President

CandidatePartyVotes%
Manuel RoxasNacionalista Party (Liberal wing)1,333,00653.93
Sergio OsmeñaNacionalista Party1,129,99445.72
Hilario MoncadoModernist Party8,5380.35
Total2,471,538100.00
Valid votes2,471,53895.17
Invalid/blank votes125,3424.83
Total votes2,596,880100.00
Registered voters/turnout2,898,60489.59
Source: Dieter Nohlen; Florian Grotz; Christof Hartmann; Graham Hassall; Soliman M. Santos.
Elections in Asia and the Pacific: A Data Handbook: Volume II: South East Asia, East Asia, and the South Pacific
.
Popular vote
Roxas
53.93%
Osmeña
45.72%
Moncado
0.35%

Presidential Canvass (by Province)

Province Moncado
(Partido Modernista)
Osmeña
Nacionalista Party
(Conservative Wing)
Roxas
Nacionalista Party
(Liberal Party)
Abra183,8136,750
Agusan (now Agusan del Norte and Agusan del Sur269,2199,357
Albay1324,34425,940
Antique1912,95218,271
Bataan48,3099,468
Batanes207051,326
Batangas
Bohol30840,25830,592
Bukidnon36592,4513,011
Bulacan3838,54939,799
Cagayan36525,60515,514
Camarines Norte45,48210,471
Camarines Sur2124,21433,267
Capiz (including Aklan2)1418,16141,844
Catanduanes48,6985,477
Cavite31911,19638,111
Cebu479298,70053,848
Cotabato56616,49017,826
Davao61,53619,22911,896
Ilocos Norte24312,09725,464
Ilocos Sur3416,53030,322
Iloilo2543,52279,136
Isabela4379,22017,431
Laguna2622,24636,527
Lanao799137,10117,212
La Union15714,84422,444

^2 Aklan only became a province on November 8, 1956, by virtue of Republic Act No. 1414.

^3 Including the cities of Tagaytay and Cavite.

^4 Including Cebu City. In Cebu City, Sergio Osmeña got 15,569 votes while Roxas only got 8,759 votes.

^5 The present-day provinces of North Cotabato, South Cotabato, Maguindanao, Shariff Kabunsuan and Sultan Kudarat were part of the then-province of Cotabato.

^6 The then-province of Lanao was divided in 1959 into two provinces: Lanao del Norte and Lanao del Sur.

Vice-President

CandidatePartyVotes%
Elpidio QuirinoNacionalista Party (Liberal wing)1,161,72552.36
Eulogio RodriguezNacionalista Party1,051,24347.38
Luis SalvadorModernist Party5,8790.26
Total2,218,847100.00
Valid votes2,218,84785.44
Invalid/blank votes378,03314.56
Total votes2,596,880100.00
Registered voters/turnout2,898,60489.59
Source: Dieter Nohlen; Florian Grotz; Christof Hartmann; Graham Hassall; Soliman M. Santos.
Elections in Asia and the Pacific: A Data Handbook: Volume II: South East Asia, East Asia, and the South Pacific
.
Popular vote
Quirino
52.36%
Rodriguez
47.38%
Salvador
0.26%

Vice Presidential Canvass (by Province)

Province Quirino
Nacionalista Party
(Liberal Party)
Rodriguez
Nacionalista Party
(Conservative Wing)
Salvador
Partido Modernista
Abra6,8943,0927
Agusan8,5408,13111
Albay23,44521,69612
Antique16,74912,02655
Bataan6,4248,24517
Batanes1,4662216
Batangas32,18522,195111
Bohol26,29034,296167
Bukidnon2,8992,13899
Bulacan29,27738,88150
Cagayan21,82617,226238
Camarines Norte10,0134,8944
Camarines Sur31,28223,05224
Capiz36,84517,49411
Catanduanes5,1648,6454
Cavite22,68817,88228
Cebu50,49592,253524
Cotabato17,36611,71868
Davao12,01517,6291,090
Ilocos Norte26,7279,672109
Ilocos Sur36,1589,46012
Iloilo68,52040,34342
Isabela19,8005,786208
Laguna17,72430,55226
Lanao12,63826,787594
La Union29,1266,860104
Leyte55,87343,776139
Manila67,22843,197139
Marinduque6,4054,18127
Masbate8,37810,00632
Mindoro12,3707,4237
Misamis Occidental8,83515,046334
Misamis Oriental12,24510,172132
Mountain Province (including Baguio)11,3406,530221
Negros Occidental56,52747,01163
Negros Oriental11,86923,00063
Nueva Ecija27,94938,69046
Nueva Vizcaya7,0953,48621
Palawan6,2914,6917
Pampanga9,29164,556119
Pangasinan84,77556,80645
Tayabas39,33815,96635
Rizal35,51254,89650
Romblon7,4823,06024
Samar34,920124,586140
Sorsogon19,44515,98010
Sulu5,9537,6405
Surigao13,80011,76856
Tarlac17,52322,81350
Zambales15,3704,29839
Zamboanga13,31718,426433
Culion Leper Colony1003291

See also

References

  1. Celso G. Cabrera. "Rodriguez is Nominated as Osmeña's Running-Mate," Manila Chronicle, January 22, 1946, p. 2
  2. "Conventions Climax Hectic Week," Manila Chronicle This week, January 27, 1946, p. 3
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