List of presidents of the Philippines facts for kids

Malacañang Palace in Manila is where the president lives and works. It was built in 1750 and is a famous symbol of the president's job.

The president of the Philippines is like the country's main leader. They are both the head of state (the symbolic leader) and the head of government (the one who runs the country). The president is also the top commander of the military.

People in the Philippines vote directly for their president. A president serves for six years and cannot be elected again. To become president, a person must be born in the Philippines, be a registered voter, know how to read and write, be at least 40 years old on election day, and have lived in the Philippines for at least ten years before the election. If a president leaves office or is removed, the vice president takes over.

The current president is Bongbong Marcos, who started his term on June 30, 2022.

A Look Back: History of Presidents

The Philippines has a rich history of leaders. Emilio Aguinaldo was the very first president of the Philippines under the Malolos Republic, also known as the First Philippine Republic. He was president until 1901 when American forces captured him during the Philippine–American War. After this, American governors-general led the country.

In 1935, the United States helped the Philippines set up the Commonwealth of the Philippines, which brought back the presidency. Manuel L. Quezon was elected as the first president of the Commonwealth. His term was six years, and he couldn't be re-elected at first. Later, the rules changed to allow re-election but shortened the term to four years.

During World War II, Japan took over the Philippines. José P. Laurel became president of the Second Philippine Republic, which was set up by Japan. Meanwhile, the Commonwealth government continued to operate from outside the country. After Japan surrendered in 1945, the Commonwealth was restored, and Sergio Osmeña became president.

In 1946, Manuel Roxas won the first election after the war. He became the first president of the independent Philippines when the Commonwealth ended on July 4, 1946. This began the Third Republic, which included five more presidents. The last of these was Ferdinand Marcos, who declared martial law in 1972. His time as president lasted until 1986 when he was removed from office by the People Power Revolution. The current constitution was put in place in 1987, starting the Fifth Republic.

Of all the presidents, three passed away while in office: Manuel L. Quezon and Manuel Roxas died from natural causes, and Ramon Magsaysay died in a plane crash. Ferdinand Marcos served the longest, for over 20 years, and is the only president to have served more than two terms. Sergio Osmeña served the shortest time.

Two women have also been president: Corazon Aquino, who became president after the People Power Revolution in 1986, and Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, who became president when the previous president resigned and was later elected for a full term.

Who Are the Presidents?

No.	Portrait	Name (Lifespan)	Term	Party/Coalition		Election	Vice president		Era
1		Emilio Aguinaldo (1869–1964)	January 23, 1899 – April 19, 1901		None	1899	None		First Republic
None						–	None		U.S. Military Government
						–			U.S. Insular Government
2		Manuel L. Quezon (1878–1944)	November 15, 1935 – August 1, 1944		Nacionalista	1935		Sergio Osmeña (Nacionalista)	Commonwealth
						1941
3		Jose P. Laurel (1891–1959)	October 14, 1943 – August 17, 1945		KALIBAPI	1943	None		Second Republic
4		Sergio Osmeña (1878–1961)	August 1, 1944 – May 28, 1946		Nacionalista	–	None		Commonwealth
5		Manuel Roxas (1892–1948)	May 28, 1946 – April 15, 1948		Liberal	1946		Elpidio Quirino (Liberal)
									Third Republic
6		Elpidio Quirino (1890–1956)	April 17, 1948 – December 30, 1953		Liberal	–	None
						1949		Fernando Lopez (Liberal, later Democratic)
7		Ramon Magsaysay (1907–1957)	December 30, 1953 – March 17, 1957		Nacionalista	1953		Carlos P. Garcia (Nacionalista)
8		Carlos P. Garcia (1896–1971)	March 18, 1957 – December 30, 1961		Nacionalista	–	None
						1957		Diosdado Macapagal (Liberal)
9		Diosdado Macapagal (1910–1997)	December 30, 1961 – December 30, 1965		Liberal	1961		Emmanuel Pelaez (Liberal, later Nacionalista)
10		Ferdinand Marcos (1917–1989)	December 30, 1965 – February 25, 1986		Nacionalista (until 1978)	1965		Fernando Lopez (Nacionalista)
						1969
									Martial Law
							None
						1973
						1977
					KBL (from 1978)
						1981			Fourth Republic
							Vacant
11		Corazon Aquino (1933–2009)	February 25, 1986 – June 30, 1992		UNIDO (until 1987)	1986		Salvador Laurel (UNIDO, later Nacionalista)	Provisional Government
									Fifth Republic
					Independent (from 1987)
12		Fidel V. Ramos (1928–2022)	June 30, 1992 – June 30, 1998		Lakas	1992		Joseph Estrada (NPC, later LAMMP)
13		Joseph Estrada (born 1937)	June 30, 1998 – January 20, 2001		LAMMP	1998		Gloria Macapagal Arroyo (Lakas)
14		Gloria Macapagal Arroyo (born 1947)	January 20, 2001 – June 30, 2010		Lakas	–	Vacant
								Teofisto Guingona Jr. (Lakas, later Independent)
						2004		Noli de Castro (Independent)
15		Benigno Aquino III (1960–2021)	June 30, 2010 – June 30, 2016		Liberal	2010		Jejomar Binay (PDP–Laban, later UNA)
16		Rodrigo Duterte (born 1945)	June 30, 2016 – June 30, 2022		PDP–Laban	2016		Leni Robredo (Liberal)
17		Bongbong Marcos (born 1957)	June 30, 2022 – present		PFP	2022		Sara Duterte (Lakas, later HNP)

Timeline of Presidents

Unofficial Presidents

Some historians believe Andrés Bonifacio was the first president of the Philippines. He was the leader of the Katipunan, a secret society that became a revolutionary government in 1896. This government was also known as the Tagalog Republic. Bonifacio used "Tagalog" to mean all native people in the Philippines.

Other historians suggest that if Bonifacio is counted, then Macario Sakay and Miguel Malvar should also be included. Malvar continued the leadership of the First Philippine Republic after Emilio Aguinaldo was captured. Macario Sakay later revived the Tagalog Republic. However, the Philippine government does not officially recognize Bonifacio, Malvar, or Sakay as presidents.

Emilio Aguinaldo is officially recognized as the first president, but this is based on his time leading the Malolos Republic. Before that, he led other revolutionary governments that are not counted in the official list of Philippine republics.

During World War II, when Manuel L. Quezon left the Philippines to set up a government outside the country, he may have given his duties to José Abad Santos, who was the Chief Justice. It's thought that Abad Santos became the acting president, but there's no official document confirming this.

List of Unofficial Presidents

Portrait	Name (Lifespan)	Term	Party		Election	Vice President		Government
	Andrés Bonifacio (1863–1897)	August 24, 1896 – March 22, 1897 or May 10, 1897		None	–	None		Sovereign Tagalog Nation
	Emilio Aguinaldo (1869–1964)	March 22, 1897 – November 1, 1897		None	1897		Mariano Trias (Nonpartisan)	Tejeros Revolutionary Government
		November 2, 1897 – December 14, 1897			–			Republic of Biak-na-Bato
		May 24, 1898 – June 23, 1898			–			Dictatorial Government
		June 23, 1898 – January 23, 1899			–			Revolutionary Government
	Francisco Makabulos (1871–1922)	April 17, 1898 – May 19, 1898		None	–	None		Central Executive Committee
	Miguel Malvar (1865–1911)	April 19, 1901 – April 16, 1902		None	–	None		First Republic
	Macario Sakay (1870–1907)	May 6, 1902 – July 14, 1906		Katipunan (holdout/revival)	–		Francisco Carreón (Nonpartisan)	Tagalog Republic
	José Abad Santos (1886–1942)	March 17, 1942 – May 1, 1942		Independent	–	None		Commonwealth
	Jorge B. Vargas (1890–1980)	January 23, 1942 – October 14, 1943		KALIBAPI	–	None		Philippine Executive Commission
	Arturo Tolentino (1910–2004)	July 6, 1986 – July 8, 1986		KBL	1986	None		Fourth Republic

See also

In Spanish: Anexo:Presidentes de Filipinas para niños

• List of vice presidents of the Philippines