1961 Philippine Senate election
17th Philippine senatorial election
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A senatorial election was held on November 14, 1961 in the Philippines. The two candidates of the Progressive Party, guest candidates of the Liberal Party, topped the election, while the Liberals themselves won four seats cutting the Nacionalista Party's majority to 13 seats in the 24-seat Philippine Senate.
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November 14, 1961
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8 (of the 24) seats in the Senate 13 seats needed for a majority | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Electoral system
Philippine Senate elections are held via plurality block voting with staggered elections, with the country as an at-large district. The Senate has 24 seats, of which 8 seats are up every 2 years. The eight seats up were last contested in 1955; each voter has eight votes and can vote up to eight names, of which the eight candidates with the most votes winning the election.
Retiring incumbents
All incumbents defended their seats in this election.
Mid-term vacancies
- Claro M. Recto (Nacionalista), died on October 2, 1960
Incumbents running elsewhere
These ran in the middle of their Senate terms. For those losing in their respective elections, they can still return to the Senate to serve out their term, while the winners will vacate their Senate seats, then it would have been contested in a special election concurrently with the next general election.
Results
The Liberal Party won four seats contested in the election, while the Nacionalista Party and the Progressive Party won two each.
Lorenzo Sumulong was the sole Nacionalista to successfully defend his seat. Liberal Francisco Soc Rodrigo, who originally was a Nacionalista, was the other senator to defend his seat.
Two Liberals are neophyte senators: Gaudencio Antonino and Maria Kalaw Katigbak. Also entering the Senate for the first time are Progressives Manuel Manahan and Raul Manglapus. Camilo Osias, who last served in the Senate in 1953, won back a Senate seat as a Liberal.
Incumbent Nacionalista senators Decoroso Rosales, Domocao Alonto, Pacita Madrigal-Warns, Pedro Sabido, and Quintin Paredes all lost.
Key:
- ‡ Seats up
- + Gained by a party from another party
- √ Held by the incumbent
- * Held by the same party with a new senator
- ^ Vacancy
Per candidate
- Guest candidate of the Liberal Party
Per party
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| Party | Votes | % | +/– | Seats | |||||
| Up | Before | Won | After | +/− | |||||
| Nacionalista Party | 17,834,477 | 45.07 | +0.03 | 6 | 17 | 2 | 13 | −4 | |
| Liberal Party | 14,988,931 | 37.88 | +9.58 | 1 | 5 | 4 | 8 | +3 | |
| Party for Philippine Progress | 6,577,698 | 16.62 | −3.99 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | New | |
| Independent | 171,262 | 0.43 | +0.39 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Nationalist Citizens' Party | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | ||||
| Vacancy | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | −1 | ||||
| Total | 39,572,368 | 100.00 | – | 8 | 24 | 8 | 24 | 0 | |
| Total votes | 6,738,805 | – | |||||||
| Registered voters/turnout | 8,483,568 | 79.43 | |||||||
| Source: [1][2] | |||||||||
Defeated incumbents
- Domocao Alonto (Nacionalista) ran as delegate to the Constitutional Convention in 1970 and won
- Pacita Madrigal-Warns (Nacionalista) retired from politics
- Pedro Sabido (Nacionalista) retired from politics
- Quintin Paredes (Nacionalista) retired from politics
- Decoroso Rosales (Nacionalista) ran as delegate to the Constitutional Convention in 1970 and won