THE SQUIZ
There are 65 million Filipinos who will go to the polls on Monday, and a bit is going on, so let’s get ready for it… Ferdinand Marcos Jr is in line for victory – his nickname is Bongbong, and he is the namesake and only son of the country’s late dictator. If the polls are correct, the 64yo will replace populist President Rodrigo Duterte and return a political dynasty associated with corruption, greed and human rights abuses to the top of the nation’s government. A wave of online disinformation has lionised the Marcos era, and his campaign slogan is “together we will rise again”.

GIVE ME THE MARCOS FAMILY CHEATSHEET…
Marcos Jr was 28yo when his father was toppled by the 1986 People Power Revolution. Ferdinand Sr had been president for more than 20 years, and to give you a sense of the guy, he ruled under martial law from 1972-81 under a form of government he branded (while channelling his inner Orwell…) ‘constitutional authoritarianism’. One of the most controversial leaders of the era, he was corrupt and brutal – and was accused of ordering the murder of opposition leader Benigno Aquino. When they were turfed out, the family fled and went into exile in Hawaii, taking gold, jewellery, and crates of cash with them. They left behind 1,200 pairs of first lady Imelda’s shoes… And they left documents which outlined monthly ‘donations’ from those who benefitted from Ferdinand Sr’s rule. Marcos Jr has downplayed/denied abuses committed by his father and developed a significant social media presence that’s rebranded the family. Imelda, now 92yo and living in Manila, has described the presidency as her son’s “destiny”.

AND THIS PRESIDENTIAL RACE?
The president and vice president are elected separately and often come from different political parties. Marcos Jr is running against Leni Robredo, who is currently the veep and a human rights lawyer who’s targeted Marcos’s ill-gotten wealth during the campaign. “If the son benefits from the father’s sin, he is also guilty,” she said in February. Robredo is an outspoken critic of outgoing ‘strongman’ President Rodrigo Duterte, whose “war on drugs” has been characterised as the extrajudicial killing of 12,000 Filipinos. Marcos Jr has appeared at mass rallies on the campaign trail with his vice-presidential running mate Sara Duterte-Carpio – Duterte’s daughter. Also running is Manny Pacquiao, a world champion boxer and national hero who became a senator in 2016.