FACT CHECK: Sara Duterte not the only VP who got more votes than elected presidents

Claim: Sara Duterte is the only vice president who got more votes than the elected president, Ferdinand Marcos Jr. 

Rating: FALSE

Why we fact-checked this: The claim can be found in an April 19 post on social media platform X (formerly Twitter): “This is the reason why they are AFRAID & TREATENED [sic] of VP Inday Sara Duterte. She is the ONLY VP who got more votes than the President.” As of writing, the post had 8,139 views, 135 comments, 46 shares, and 237 reactions. 

During the May 9, 2022 elections, Marcos was elected president with 31,629,783 votes while Duterte was elected vice president with 32,208,417 votes. 

The facts: Duterte was not the only vice president in Philippine history who got more votes than the elected president. Here are other instances:

• 2004 elections: Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo won as president with 12,905,808 votes while Noli De Castro won as vice president with 15,100,431 votes. 
• 1998 elections: Joseph Estrada was elected president with 10,722,295 votes while Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo won as vice president with 12,667,252 votes. Arroyo eventually became president in 2001 following the ouster of Estrada during EDSA II. 
• 1992 elections: Fidel V. Ramos was elected president with 5,342,521 votes while Joseph Estrada won as vice president with 6,739,738 votes. Estrada eventually won the 1998 presidential election. 
• 1957 elections: Carlos P. Garcia was elected president with 2,072,257 votes while Diosdado Macapagal won as vice president with 2,189,197 votes.
• 1941 elections: Manuel L. Quezon was elected president with 1,340,320 votes while Sergio Osmeña won as vice president with 1,445,897 votes. However, their terms were cut short due to the Japanese occupation of the Philippines. 
• 1935 elections: Manuel L. Quezon was elected president with 695,332 votes while Sergio Osmeña won as vice president with 812,352 votes. 

All figures above can also be found on the now-defunct website The Philippine Presidency Project, with some commentary on the results of the 1941 elections. The website also lists different figures for the 1998 elections, although Arroyo’s votes still outnumber Estrada’s votes. 

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For elections held in 1998 and earlier, the figures above also match those found in the book Elections in Asia and the Pacific: A Data Handbook: Volume II: South East Asia, East Asia and the South Pacific except for small differences in the following:

• 1941 elections –  The book cites Quezon as having received 1,340,000 votes (instead of 1,340,320) while his vice president, Osmeña, got 1,446,000 (instead of 1,445,897).
• 1935 elections – The book cites Quezon as having received 694,546 votes (instead of 695,332) while vice president Osmeña got 811,138 (instead of 812,532).

Previous related fact-checks: Rappler has previously fact-checked claims related to election results:

• FALSE: Marcos Jr. got biggest electoral mandate in Philippine history (June 30, 2022)

• HINDI TOTOO: Si Sara Duterte ang unang incumbent city mayor na nahalal na bise presidente (May 30, 2022)
• HINDI TOTOO: Mas marami ang nabilang na boto kaysa sa botante noong eleksiyon (May 27, 2022)
• HINDI TOTOO: Retrato ng resulta ng 2022 halalan mula sa Rappler #PHVote microsite (May 9, 2022)
• HINDI TOTOO: Bilang ng bumoto kay Marcos sa HK noong Abril 10, ayon sa exit poll (April 12, 2022)
• FALSE: Ferdinand Marcos was youngest elected as mayor, congressman, governor, and senator (September 16, 2021)
• FALSE: Kabataan Partylist received about 160,000 votes in 2019 election (January 27, 2021)

– Percival Bueser/Rappler.com 

Percival Bueser is a graduate of Rappler’s fact-checking mentorship program. This fact check was reviewed by a member of Rappler’s research team and a senior editor. Learn more about Rappler’s fact-checking mentorship program here.

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