| Affiliation: | Laban ng Demokratikong Pilipino (Aquino Wing) |
| Key People: | Lito Banayo (political strategist, spokesman) |
The 2004 presidential campaign of Panfilo Lacson was launched when he filed his certificate of candidacy on December 29, 2003.[1] That time, Lacson is only in the half of his first term as a Senator, and three years ago, he is the former chief of the Philippine National Police.
This is his first try to run as president.[2]
Lacson won a senate seat in 2001, and that time he was rumored to run as president in the near future.[3]
That time, he was only supported by some congressmen like Butz Aquino, Ronaldo Zamora, and Carlos Padilla,[4] while he gathered the support of his former commanding officers, PMA upper classmen and classmates.[5]
Being known for being a military and police officer, Lacson offers a style governance that focuses on crime-fighting.[6]
Angara faction (who supports Fernando Poe Jr.'s presidential run), said Lacson could be disqualified from the presidential race for allegedly "misrepresenting" himself as the party standard-bearer. They also said that his candidacy only boosted the election for full-term of then-incumbent President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, as they consider it to divide the votes for the opposition.[7] If Poe run as president, Lacson will not slide down as his vice presidential candidate.[8]
This issue of opposition split made the Iglesia Ni Cristo (INC) and El Shaddai endorse the incumbent Gloria Macapagal Arroyo.[9] INC was rumored of endorsing him at first.[10]
By then, Poe and Lacson have both filed their certificates of candidacies for president. According to the rules of candidacy, every presidential candidate must have a political party to back him or her. With the obvious split within the ranks of the LDP, and with no signs that the two factions would come to an agreement, the COMELEC decided to informally split the party into the Aquino and the Angara wings.[11] [12] Lacson then ran under the LDP - Aquino Wing, and Poe under the LDP - Angara Wing, which would later become the KNP.[13]
During before and the campaign period, there had been numerous unification talks between the two factions.[14] [15] The opposition saw the need to become united under one banner to boost their chances of winning the presidential election against the organized political machinery of Arroyo.[16] The plans of unification did not materialize due to the stubbornness of both Poe and Lacson. Lacson wanted Poe to concede to him and run as his vice-presidential candidate while the supporters of Poe wanted Lacson to back out from his candidacy and instead support Poe, citing his low performance in the surveys.[17] [18]
Angara brought the issue into the Supreme Court, and Lacson decided to resign in the party.[19]
Lacson and Poe wanted to be unified by many opposition members by April, but no talks happened.[20]
Lacson's 2004 campaign received harassment from the administration candidate, such as tearing down their posters.[21]
After he resign on LDP, and continued campaigning as an independent candidate in the elections. He finished third with 10.88% of the vote, behind the incumbent Arroyo and Poe.[22] He did not concede formally, but only concede by province. He was offered allegedly by some administration officers, but he insisted to decline it.[23] [24]
