GUIDE TO POLITICAL PARTIES
Lakas-Christian Muslim Democrats


Formed in the heat of the 1992 campaign, when presidential candidate Ramos found himself without a political party. Ramos had decided to bolt the LDP, which chose Mitra as its frontrunner. When Ramos won, Lakas was transformed from a ragtag band of politicians to become the ruling party in the House during his incumbency. Its fortunes fell in 1998, when the Lakas candidate, the incumbent Speaker de Venecia, was trounced by Estrada.

Lakas ended up the minority in a LAMMP-dominated Congress. But it bounced back to power after Estrada's fall and Arroyo’s assumption of the presidency. Back as House Speaker in 2001, de Venecia formed yet another “rainbow coalition” called the People Power Coalition, which included the NPC, to become the majority in the House. As of late 2003, the party had 83 congressmen, some of them from the most influential political families. In 2004, Lakas became the vehicle for Arroyo’s presidential bid. Originally called Lakas-National Union of Christian Democrats, it has renamed itself Lakas-Christian Muslim Democrats.

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