First ladies and gentlemen of the Philippines

Not to be confused with Spouse of the president of the Philippines.

The first lady or first gentleman of the Philippines (Filipino: Unang Ginang o Unang Ginoó ng Pilipinas) is the courtesy title given to the host or hostess of Malacañang Palace, the residence of the head of state and head of government of the Philippines.

First Lady of the Philippines
Unang Ginang ng Pilipinas
Current Liza Araneta Marcos since June 30, 2022
Style	Her Excellency
Residence	Malacañang Palace
Inaugural holder	Hilaria Aguinaldo[note 1]
Formation	January 23, 1899

The title is traditionally held by the consort of the president of the Philippines, and as such is used to interchangeably refer to the spouse of the incumbent; however, this is rarely the case, especially for presidents without a living spouse at the time of their tenure. The position, which is customary in nature and dignity, merits no official remuneration from the state.

Liza Araneta Marcos is the current first lady of the Philippines, as wife of the 17th and current president of the Philippines, Bongbong Marcos.

Terminology

The host of the Malacañang Palace, who is usually the consort of the president, has been referred to in English as the "first lady" (Filipino: Unang Ginang). As Gloria Macapagal Arroyo took office as the first female president who is not a widow, the masculine form "first gentleman" (abbreviated FG; Filipino: Unang Ginoó) was used for her husband, Jose Miguel Arroyo.^[2]

Role

The position of first lady or first gentleman is not an elected position, carries no official duties, and has no personal remuneration. Nonetheless, the title holder participates in humanitarian and charitable work on behalf of the president, often in line with his or her policies and programmes. Furthermore, many of the holders of this post have taken an active role in campaigning for the president, or have participated in public life through some other manner.

Imelda Marcos was given a formal job as Governor of Metro Manila and as Minister of Human Settlements by her husband Ferdinand Marcos during his 21-year rule. She is also the first incumbent first lady to enter politics by winning a seat in the Interim Batasang Pambansa in 1978.

Two former first ladies later won seats in Congress after their husbands' tenures in office. In 1995, Marcos herself became the first former first lady to win a seat in the House of Representatives. In 2001, Loi Ejercito became the first former first lady to win a seat in the Senate.

List

President No.	Portrait	Name	Tenure	Age at tenure start	President (Spouse, unless noted)
1		Hilaria Aguinaldo February 17, 1877 – March 6, 1921 (aged 44)	January 23, 1899 – March 23, 1901	121 years, 340 days	Aguinaldo m. January 1, 1896
2		Aurora Quezon February 19, 1888 – April 28, 1949 (aged 61)	November 15, 1935 – August 1, 1944	47 years, 269 days	Quezon m. December 17, 1918
3		Pacencia Laurel April 30, 1889 – January 1, 1963 (aged 73)	October 14, 1943 – August 17, 1945	54 years, 167 days	Laurel m. April 9, 1911
4		Esperanza Osmeña December 18, 1894 – April 4, 1978 (aged 83)	August 1, 1944 – May 28, 1946	49 years, 227 days	Osmeña m. January 10, 1920
5		Trinidad Roxas October 4, 1900 – June 20, 1995 (aged 94)	May 28, 1946 – April 15, 1948	45 years, 236 days	Roxas m. April 14, 1921
6		Victoria Quirino May 18, 1931 – November 29, 2006 (aged 75)	April 17, 1948 – December 30, 1953	16 years, 335 days	Quirino Daughter [note 2]
7		Luz Magsaysay June 25, 1914 – August 17, 2004 (aged 90)	December 30, 1953 – March 17, 1957	39 years, 188 days	Magsaysay m. June 16, 1933
8		Leonila Garcia July 17, 1906 – May 17, 1994 (aged 87)	March 18, 1957 – December 30, 1961	50 years, 244 days	Garcia m. May 24, 1933
9		Eva Macapagal November 1, 1915 – May 16, 1999 (aged 83)	December 30, 1961 – December 30, 1965	46 years, 59 days	Macapagal m. May 5, 1946
10		Imelda Marcos Born (1929-07-02) July 2, 1929 (age 95)	December 30, 1965 – February 25, 1986	36 years, 181 days	Marcos Sr. m. April 17, 1954
11	Vacant				C. Aquino Widow[note 3]
12		Amelita Ramos Born (1926-12-29) December 29, 1926 (age 97)	June 30, 1992 – June 30, 1998	62 years, 184 days	Ramos m. October 21, 1954
13		Loi Ejercito Born (1930-06-02) June 2, 1930 (age 94)	June 30, 1998 – January 20, 2001	68 years, 28 days	Estrada m. December 6, 1959
14		Jose Miguel Arroyo Born (1945-06-27) June 27, 1945 (age 79)	January 20, 2001 – June 30, 2010	55 years, 207 days	Arroyo m. August 2, 1968
15	Vacant				B. Aquino III Bachelor[note 4]
16					Duterte None designated[note 5]
17		Liza Marcos[3] Born (1959-08-21) August 21, 1959 (age 65)	June 30, 2022	62 years, 313 days	Marcos Jr. m. April 17, 1993

Non-spouses who held the distinction

On a few occasions, individuals who are not spouses of the incumbent president have temporarily performed tasks reserved for the first lady or first gentleman, effectively rendering them as the de facto holder of the position; most often they are a direct relative of the president. To date, only Elpidio Quirino, Corazon Aquino, and Benigno Aquino III had no spouse to assume the title of First Lady or First Gentleman.^[4] Rodrigo Duterte did not appoint a first lady despite having Honeylet Avanceña as his common-law wife. In the case of Quirino, his daughter received the title as he was a widower upon his accession.

Victoria Quirino-Gonzalez was the first lady for her father, Elpidio Quirino. She was made the official host of the Malacañang Palace.^[5] However Victoria is regarded as the first to be named with the role of first lady. The spouses of previous presidents, from Emilio Aguinaldo to Manuel Roxas, were not given the title during their respective husbands' terms.^[1]

Presidencies with no regular first lady or gentlemen

Benigno Aquino III

Benigno Aquino III never married, so the palace hired professionals to manage tasks and duties customarily reserved for the first lady, such as organizing state dinners.^[4]

On some occasions, he charged one or more of his sisters with entertaining local and foreign dignitaries.^[6] During the 2015 APEC summit hosted in Pasay, his youngest sister, Kris Aquino served as temporary first lady for the event. Their other sisters, Ballsy Aquino-Cruz, Pinky Aquino-Abelleda, and Viel Aquino-Dee, also assisted him in his various duties.^{[7][8][9][10][11]}

Rodrigo Duterte

Honeylet Avanceña, the partner of President Rodrigo Duterte, has taken on the duties of first lady on several state functions despite not being designated as such during Duterte's presidency.

Prior to his inauguration, incumbent Rodrigo Duterte declared his eldest daughter Sara would be the first lady despite having Honeylet Avanceña as his common-law wife. He was previously married to Elizabeth Zimmerman;^[12] their marriage was annulled in 2000.

However, Sara Duterte was already mayor-elect of Davao City, and declined the offer.^[13][14] Following her filing of a 10-day leave of absence until June 22, there were speculations that she did so to assume the role of first lady, but she neither denied or confirmed speculations.^[15][16] Former Department of the Interior and Local Government secretary Rafael Alunan suggested that Vice-President Leni Robredo serve as de facto first lady^[17] but this never materialised.

Avanceña nevertheless would fulfill roles usually conducted by the first lady such as during the official visit of Japanese prime minister Shinzo Abe, and the 30th ASEAN Summit in 2017.^[18]

See also

• President of the Philippines
• List of presidents of the Philippines
• List of ancient Philippine consorts
• Malacañang Palace
• First lady

Notes

1. The term "First Lady" was first used for Victoria Quirino-González, who was the daughter of President Elpidio Quirino.^[1]
2. Quirino's spouse, Alicia Quirino, was massacred along with the rest of the family during the Japanese occupation of the Philippines in World War II before he became president. Their daughter, Victoria, was considered First Lady.
3. Aquino's spouse, Benigno Aquino Jr., was assassinated before she became president. Her daughter Ballsy was considered as de facto First Lady.^{[citation needed]}
4. Aquino was a lifelong bachelor, but his sisters served as unofficial first ladies. Malacañang Palace also hired professionals to host state banquets.
5. Duterte's marriage with Elizabeth Zimmerman was annulled before he became president. His domestic partner at the time of his presidency, Honeylet Avanceña, was never designated as First Lady but has occasionally taken on the duties of first lady.

References

1. Lo, Ricky (May 15, 2016). "The Fabulous First Ladies, 1897-2001". The Philippine Star. Retrieved May 11, 2016.
2. Flores, Wilson Lee (March 2, 2003). "Who were the best First Ladies?". The Philippine Star. Retrieved August 25, 2021.
3. Cabristante, Raffy (June 26, 2022). "Marcos says family preparing for his assumption to office". ABS-CBN News. Retrieved June 26, 2022.
4. San Juan, Thelma Sioson (July 27, 2014). "President who has no first lady: It is what it is". Philippine Daily Inquirer. Retrieved May 11, 2016.
5. Tejero, Constantino. "'Do not depend on a man': Why the Quirino women are the family's driving force". Philippine Daily Inquirer. Retrieved August 25, 2021. When he (Elpidio Quirino) became president in 1948 (succeeding Manuel Roxas, who died of heart attack while in office), he made 16-year-old Vicky his First Lady and official hostess at Malacañang functions. He never remarried.
6. "President who has no first lady: It is what it is". Inquirer Lifestyle. Philippine Daily Inquirer. July 27, 2014. Retrieved August 25, 2021.
7. Lago, Amanda T. (June 26, 2021). "The sisters Noynoy Aquino leaves behind". Rappler. Retrieved September 9, 2021.
8. "WATCH: Kris to host lunch for APEC first ladies". November 9, 2015.
9. "LOOK: Kris, sisters all set to host luncheon for APEC first ladies". November 19, 2015.
10. Montesa, Jon (November 11, 2015). "Kris as APEC 2015 First Lady". Manila Bulletin. Archived from the original on November 21, 2015. Retrieved May 11, 2016.
11. "Aquino's firsts". Rappler. June 15, 2016. Retrieved July 17, 2022.
12. Vanzi, Sol (June 26, 2016). "Duterte's women". Manila Bulletin. Archived from the original on July 2, 2016. Retrieved June 29, 2016. Although Duterte has announced that his official First Lady will be his daughter Sara, Honeylet will be keeping house for the President, wherever he decides to stay.
13. Alconaba, Nico (May 11, 2016). "Mayor Sara turns down first lady job". Inquirer Mindanao. Retrieved July 19, 2016. The country's next President still has no first lady after Sara Duterte-Carpio, daughter of presumptive President Rodrigo Duterte, turned down the offer.
14. "Duterte's families arrive separately in Malacañang". GMA News. June 30, 2016. Retrieved July 19, 2016. During the campaigns, Duterte had said that he was planning to name Inday Sara as his First Lady, but she begged off citing her responsibilities in Davao City.
15. Carillo, Carmencita (July 2, 2016). "Davao mayor takes a leave on first day of office". BusinessWorld. Retrieved July 19, 2016.
16. Carillo, Lovely (July 13, 2016). "Pulong denies Sara resigning". The Mindanao Daily Mirror. Retrieved July 19, 2016.
17. Macabalang, Ali (July 4, 2016). "Leni pushed as Duterte's 'de facto First Lady' in official functions". Manila Bulletin.
18. Ranada, Pia (July 1, 2017). "The evolution of Duterte's First Lady: Honeylet Avanceña". Rappler. Avanceña has been taking on so many tasks usually given to first ladies that even Palace photographers and captioners mistakenly called her "First Lady" in a photo release. Within hours, the Palace sent an email correcting the caption, replacing the title with "longtime partner."