Iglesia Ni Cristo endorsements and how the presidential candidates fared in the past elections
Religious group Iglesia ni Cristo on May 3 formally endorsed Ferdinand ''Bongbong'' Marcos Jr. for president and Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte-Carpio for vice president in the 2022 national elections.
This announcement was released in a report broadcast on Net 25, a station owned by INC leaders.
The church also announced 12 senatorial bets: Jojo Binay, Alan Peter Cayetano, JV Ejercito Estrada, Guillermo Eleazar, Chiz Escudero, Jinggoy Estrada, Win Gatchalian, Loren Legarda, Robin Padilla, Joel Villanueva, Mark Villar, and Migz Zubiri.
“Ang kaisahan ng Iglesia ay kinikilala ng mga miyembro nito na isa sa mga aral sa bibliya na dapat na sundin,” the report said as the church declares its bets for the 2022 national elections.
The endorsement of INC for the Marcos-Duterte tandem for the upcoming elections is similar to their bets in 2016. During the 2016 national elections, INC endorsed Sara Duterte’s father and then-Davao City Mayor, Rodrigo Duterte for president and Marcos Jr. for vice president. The church’s presidential bet won while Marcos Jr. lost to Vice President Leni Robredo.
Iglesia ni Cristo, a religious movement established by Felix Manalo in 1914, is known to practice bloc voting wherein all members vote for a particular candidate chosen by their church leaders. Since 1969, Iglesia ni Cristo’s bloc voting has been influential especially for national positions.
Of the presidential candidates whom Iglesia ni Cristo endorsed since the 1969 elections, seven officially won the race. However, not all INC-endorsed presidential candidates who triumphed in the race finished their term — two were ousted through people power. Meanwhile, one Presidential candidate whom Iglesia ni Cristo endorsed lost the elections.
Iglesia ni Cristo endorsed the late dictator Ferdinand Marcos, father of Bongbong Marcos, during the 1969 elections. This was his second term as President after winning the 1965 national elections when he was also endorsed by the religious group. Marcos served as President until he imposed Martial Law in 1972.
More than a decade later, during the 1986 snap elections, Iglesia ni Cristo again endorsed Marcos who was then declared victorious against Corazon Aquino. Aquino, however, was later sworn in as president through people power during the same year.
Iglesia ni Cristo bloc voting failed during the 1992 elections when Eduardo "Danding" Cojuangco Jr. whom the religious group endorsed, lost to Fidel Ramos who served from 1992 to 1998.
During the 1998 national elections, Iglesia ni Cristo endorsed Joseph Estrada who won and served as president from 1998 until his ouster in 2001 also through people power.
Since then, all Presidential candidates whom Iglesia ni Cristo endorsed won the elections from Gloria Macapagal Arroyo in 2004, Benigno Simeon Aquino III in 2010, and the incumbent Rodrigo Duterte in 2016.
Iglesia ni Cristo takes pride in endorsing presidential bets who eventually win the elections.
“Ang pasya ng pamamahala ng Iglesia ay iginagalang ng mga miyembro nito. Ang mga pulitiko naman ay kinikilala ang magagawang dulot ng unity ng Iglesia sa kanilang ikapapanalo sa Mayo 9, araw ng Lunes, sa araw ng botohan,” the church said.
Research from AnaMa Reyes
