SNA (Dallas) — Philippines President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos, Jr., who assumed office yesterday, declared, “Judge me not by my ancestors, but by my actions” as he won the 2022 national elections.

The “ancestors” whom he might be judged by, of course, are his father Ferdinand Marcos, Sr., former dictator of the Philippines from 1965 to 1986, and his notorious mother–still living at age 92–Imelda Marcos, former First Lady of the Philippines.

Having won 59% of the popular vote, Bongbong Marcos and his message garnered more support than the next four candidates combined, leaving some wondering how he was so effective in slipping the shackles of history. Reports of broken poll machines and fraudulent voting emerged, but even then nothing seemed able to stand in the way of the Marcos machine.

Whereas his main competitor, former Vice President Leni Robredo, ran her campaign on themes of transparency and good governance, Marcos, in contrast, presented abstract national pride as the reason why people should vote for him. He delivered a broad vision of economic prosperity and offered a nostalgic return to former glories.

Part of his message echoes that of his own father in the 1965 presidential election campaign, when the Philippines was Asia’s second-largest economy behind Japan.

Bongbong Marcos was also able to tap into discontent with the status quo, and he painted his main rival Robredo as a representative of an out-of-touch liberal elite, which many Filipinos associate with the dire economic inequality of the nation.

Additionally, he benefitted from a “big tent” approach which garnered support from constituencies as diverse as wealthy supporters of Duterte-style anti-crime initiatives and the urban and rural poor. He effectively presented himself as a relatable everyman.

Many observers also noted the particular savvy of his social media outreach, especially on Facebook and YouTube, reaching a large audience across the archipelago.

On election day, Marcos swept the nation, with the exception of only a few small regions. Among the areas he dominated were Quezon City and Metro Manila, the nation’s largest city and its capital.

All in all, it was a remarkable reversal of fortune for a family that for decades had been considered one the most corrupt and unmourned dynasties in Asia.

Ferdinand Marcos Sr. was believed to have been thoroughly discredited when he was chased from power in 1986. In his final years in office, there were bloody crackdowns on popular protests and numerous human rights violations. Memorably, Imelda Marcos is almost exclusively associated with her obsession with expensive shoes, at one point owning almost 3,000 pairs that were suspected to have been purchased with government money.

And yet, Bongbong Marcos was able to not only overcome public memories of that dark time, but to somehow transform them into an imagined era of national pride, helping boost him to an impressive electoral victory.

The rehabilitation of the Marcos dynasty underlines a continuing culture of impunity within a Philippine society which is still grappling with its vast inequality.

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