List of Philippine presidential firsts

The following is a list of firsts attained by various Presidents of the Philippines. Distinctions were achieved while at office unless otherwise stated.


Further information: Emilio Aguinaldo
  • First President of the Philippines,[1] officially recognized as such. (See also: List of unofficial Presidents of the Philippines)
  • First President to declare martial law (May 1898)[2]
  • First President to be a Freemason.[3]
  • First President to be a member of the military.[4]
  • First President to live to the age of 90.
  • First President who was a widower following the death of his first wife Hilaria on March 6, 1921.
  • First President to remarry when he married María Agoncillo on 1930.

Manuel L. Quezon (1935–1944)
Further information: Manuel L. Quezon
  • First President to be a lawyer.[4]
  • First President to ride an aircraft while in office.[5]
  • First President to celebrate his 60th birthday while in office, turning 60 on August 19, 1938.
  • First President to die while in office.
  • First President to die outside the Philippines, dying in New York
  • First President to die before the age of 70 as he died at the age of 65
  • First President to meet a US president with Pres. Franklin D. Roosevelt

José P. Laurel (1943–1945)
Further information: José P. Laurel
  • The President Who Was Elected In The Japanese Era In The Philippines
  • First President from Batangas
  • First President to be elected for another position after leaving the office when he was elected for a second term in the Senate in 1951.

Manuel Roxas (1946–1948)
Further information: Manuel Roxas
  • First President to die before the age of 60. He died at the age of 56 on April 15, 1948.
  • First President to have a descendant formerly appointed as a secretary of DILG Secretary Mar Roxas.
  • First President to have held 3 of the Highest Positions in the Government. Prior to serving as President, He previously served as Senate President and House Speaker.

Elpidio Quirino (1948–1953)
Further information: Elpidio Quirino
  • First President to meet the Pope while in office when he met Pope Pius XII in October 9, 1951
  • First President to be inaugurated at the Independence Grandstand (now known as Quirino Grandstand).
  • First President to face an impeachment complaint. 1949. Over alleged usage of government funds in refurbishing the Malacañang Palace and alleged involvement in diamond smuggling.[6][7]

Ramon Magsaysay (1953–1957)
Further information: Ramon Magsaysay
  • First President to take their oath of office while wearing the Barong Tagalog[8]
  • First President to swear on a bible at their inauguration.[9]
  • First President to be born after the Spanish colonial era.
  • First President born in the 20th Century.
  • First President not to die of natural causes as he was killed in an aircraft disaster.
  • First President to die before reaching the age of 50 as he died at the age of 49 on March 17, 1957, 5 months before his 50th birthday.
  • First President to predecease both of his parents. His Father died on January 24, 1969 at the age of 94 while his Mother died on May 5, 1981 at the age of 95.

Carlos P. Garcia (1957–1961)
Further information: Carlos P. Garcia
  • First President to lie in state at the Manila Cathedral.

Diosdado P. Macapagal (1961–1965)
Further information: Diosdado Macapagal
  • First President to have a child who would later become president when his daughter Gloria assumed the presidency following the resignation of Joseph Estrada in 2001.

Ferdinand Marcos (1965–1986)
Further information: Ferdinand Marcos
  • First President to be elected for a second term (1969)[10]
  • First President to meet two Popes while in office, meeting with Popes Paul VI and John Paul II during their respective visits to the Philippines.
  • First President whose spouse would also run for President when his widow Imelda ran for President during the 1998 Presidential elections.
  • First and only President to hold office for two decades (1965–1986).

Corazon Aquino (1986–1992)
Further information: Corazon Aquino
  • First Female President of the Philippines.[11]
  • First President to have their taking of oath administered by an Associate Justice.[9]
  • First President to have no previous experience in government.
  • First President to die in the 21st Century. She died on August 1, 2009 at the age of 76.

Fidel V. Ramos (1992–1998)
Further information: Fidel Ramos
  • First President to be a non-Catholic[12]
  • First President to be a Protestant[13]
  • First and only military official to hold every rank from Second Lieutenant to Commander-in-Chief.
  • First President to celebrate his 70th birthday while in Office. He turned 70 on March 18, 1998, 3 months before the end of his term.
  • First President to be elected after turning 60. He celebrated his 60th Birthday on March 18, 1988 and was elected on 1992 at the age of 64.

Joseph Estrada (1998–2001)
Further information: Joseph Estrada
  • First President who is a former actor.
  • First and only president who has undergone an impeachment trial.
  • First President to resign from office.
  • First President to serve as Mayor after his tenure as President when he served as City mayor of Manila from 2013 to 2019.
  • First President to use a special name as his official address name combining his real surname Ejercito with his screen name Estrada.
  • First President whose wife was elected to the Senate. His wife Luisa was elected to the Senate in 2001.

Gloria Macapagal Arroyo (2001–2010)
Further information: Gloria Macapagal Arroyo
  • First presidential child (and daughter) to become president. Her father is former president Diosdado Macapagal.
  • First President to be elected and Inaugurated in the 21st Century. She was Inaugurated as President following the resignation of Joseph Estrada and was elected to a full term in May 2004
  • First President to have two different Vice Presidents. Her first Vice President was Teofisto Guingona whom she appointed to the Vice Presidency when she ascended to the Presidency following the Resignation of Joseph Estrada while her second Vice President, Noli De Castro won the 2004 Elections.
  • First President to serve in Congress after leaving office when she was elected as Representative of the 2nd District of the Province of Pampanga.
  • First President to take her oath of office outside of Luzon when she took her oath of office for her full term in Cebu on 2004.

Benigno Aquino III (2010–2016)
Further information: Benigno Aquino III
  • First President to be a bachelor and childless while in office.[14]
  • First presidential son to become president. His mother is former president Corazon Aquino.
  • First President to be elected after turning 50. He celebrated his 50th Birthday on February 8, 2010 and was elected on May 2010.

Rodrigo Duterte (2016–present)
Further information: Rodrigo Duterte
  • First President from Mindanao.[15]
  • First Local Chief Executive to be elected president.
  • First septuagenarian president. He turned 70 in March 2015 and was elected in May 2016 at the age of 71.
  • First president to visit Israel while in office.[16]

References
  1. Lapeña, Carmela (August 25, 2013). "The case for Andres Bonifacio as the first Philippine president". GMA News. Retrieved February 22, 2018.
  2. "Basis for Martial Law declaration, against the law – Constitutionalist". UNTV News. May 25, 2017. Retrieved February 22, 2018.
  3. "Well-Known Filipino Masons". Mencius Lodge No. 93. Retrieved February 22, 2018.
  4. Pulumbarit, Veronica (December 17, 2017). "Past PHL presidents: Many were lawyers, one a housewife, another a mechanic". GMA News. Retrieved February 22, 2018.
  5. "The Presidential Planes". Presidential Museum and Library. Retrieved July 15, 2019.
  6. "Half of Phl's presidents faced impeachment raps". The Philippine Star. July 21, 2014. Retrieved August 27, 2020.
  7. "The History of the Senate of the Philippines". Official Gazette of the Republic of the Philippines. Retrieved August 27, 2020.
  8. "Philippine History: President Ramon F. Magsaysay: Champion of the masses". Yahoo! Philippines. Manila Bulletin.
  9. Elefante, Fil (June 27, 2016). "Tales of past presidential inaugurations: Superstition and history". Business Mirror. Retrieved March 7, 2018.
  10. Schirmer, Daniel; Shalom, Stephen Rosskamm (1987). The Philippines Reader: A History of Colonialism, Neocolonialism, Dictatorship, and Resistance (illustrated ed.). South End PRess. p. 163. ISBN 9780896082755. Retrieved February 22, 2018. In 1969,... ...enabled Marcos to become the first Philippine president to be re-elected for a second term
  11. McKittrick, David (August 3, 2009). "Cory Aquino: President of the Philippines who brought democracy to the islands". The Independent. Retrieved February 22, 2018.
  12. Allen, John L. (2014). The Catholic Church: What Everyone Needs to Know (revised ed.). Oxford University Press. p. 159. ISBN 9780199379804. Ramos was the first and, to date, the only non-Catholic president of the Philippines
  13. Whitaker, Raymond (August 11, 1994). "Ramos clashes with Church on birth control: A United Nations population conference in Cairo next month promises trouble for the Philippines and Egyptian governments". The Independent. Retrieved February 22, 2018.
  14. "Among 15 presidents, RUBUB holds many 'firsts'". GMA News. June 28, 2010. Retrieved July 15, 2019.
  15. "Profile: Who is President Rodrigo Duterte?". Philippine Daily Inquirer. Inquirer Research. June 29, 2016. Retrieved February 22, 2018.
  16. "Duterte back in PH from visits to Israel, Jordan". ABS-CBN News. September 8, 2018. Retrieved July 15, 2019.
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