The Iglesia ni Cristo (INC) is known for its practice of bloc voting during elections. The INC is known for issuing directives to vote for certain candidates endorsed by the church under the tenet of obedience and the advocacy of a united unit. INC spokesperson Edwil Zabala has stressed the importance of unity of its members with the church leadership. As a consequence, candidates often attempt to secure endorsement from the INC. This so-called "Unity Vote" is justified by the INC as one of their "great powers" (dakilang kapangyarihan), explained as such in their official publication Pasugo: "Ang katangiang ito sa pagkakaisa ng Iglesia Ni Kristo ay isang lakas na hindi matutularan ng ibat-ibang relihiyon sa Pilipinas, bagama't iyan ang sa ngayo'y pinagsisikapang magawa ng Iglesia Katolika at iba pang mga relihiyon." (This characteristic of unity of the Iglesia ni Kristo is a strength that could not be emulated by the different religions in the Philippines, despite this being the current aim of the Catholic Church and other religions).Pasugo, July 1964.

History Iglesia ni Cristo also has two party-lists in the House of Representatives, namely Alagad Party-list founded by Diogenes Osabel in 1997 and its successor SAGIP Partylist in 2013, both chaired by then congressman Rodante Marcoleta who later became elected senator in the 2025 Philippine Senate election. After the elder Marcoleta was elected senator, his son Paolo Marcoleta replaced him as SAGIP partylist congressman.To satisfy the Comelec requirement that marginalized groups are to be represented by partylists, both partylists have been claiming to represent the urban poor and attempt to alleviate poverty in the Philippines.

The Iglesia ni Cristo, under Alagad and SAGIP and under press releases under its own name, has often used its power in Congress to push for matters that it would disagree with the Catholic Church, such as reproduction health. In one privilege speech in 2004, the elder Marcoleta (as Alagad congressman) has pushed for population control while simultaneously attacking the Catholic Church for being too soft on the matter. Similarly in 2011, Iglesia ni Cristo has endorsed the Responsible Parenthood and Reproductive Health Act of 2012, in contrast to the stern opposition of the majority of the Catholic Church.

Alagad partylist was also linked with a practice pro-administration groups for the then president Gloria Macapagal Arroyo in the legislative sector (Alagad joined the majority bloc long after negotiations with Iglesia ni Cristo and Arroyo over the matter of previous president's Estrada's house arrest) used to silence stronger impeachment filings by the opposition by filing weak impeachment complaints (which would block impeachment filings for a year, and would later be attempted again the next year). Then congressman Marcoleta has filed one of these false impeachment complaints in June 2005, clarifying that he was motivated by "betrayal of public trust" during the Hello Garci scandal and was attacked by then Minority Floor Leader Francis Escudero.

Alagad itself was subject to disputes: the previous congressman Osabel would later attempt to oust her successor Marcoleta for "loss of trust and confidence", in which Marcoleta declined to resign. Marcoleta remained the representative of Alagad until it was dissolved in 2013, until he was later reinstated as representative for 1-SAGIP.

The Iglesia ni Cristo is known for sending its members to political rallies in a technique known as "hakot" (Filipino verb meaning "to grab" - in which rally participants are paid to astroturf political rallies), having supported the EDSA III rally calling for the freedom of newly deposed president Joseph Estrada after having been charged for embezzlement. It has sent successive rallies ever since: a rally held in 2015 to protest what was seen by Iglesia ni Cristo as a violation of "separation of church and state" when the Department of Justice under Justice secretary Leila de Lima tried to investigate Iglesia ni Cristo over kidnappings during the 2015 Iglesia ni Cristo leadership controversy, two rallies in 2025 over the proceedings of impeachment of Sara Duterte, one in January 2025 held for one day, one in November 2025 planned for three days (but church management have postponed the rally proceedings on last day), and one in mid-2026 over the plunder charges of the elder Marcoleta (of which he was detained a few days later). All rallies attempted to block highways near National Capital Region, causing serious distruption in traffic.

Analysis

While it is conceded that the effect of the INC's bloc vote might be influential in local elections where the winning margin can only amount to a few hundred votes, the potency of it has yet to be tested convincingly in national races. The INC usually announces its endorsements around a week before election day "when the rankings of the candidates in the polls have stabilized" and candidates' rankings in opinion polls seem to be an important factor on how the INC chooses candidates to support.

Some candidates endorsed by the INC in senatorial elections for instance, have failed to win. During the 2016 Senate elections, INC-backed Martin Romualdez and Francis Tolentino were defeated by Leila de Lima and Kiko Pangilinan. The 2025 Philippine Senate election saw INC-backed Bong Revilla falling in 14th place.

Allen Surla, professor at De La Salle University pointed out that the INC bloc-voting has served the sect well "since they are able to negotiate with politicians' concessions that otherwise would have been denied of less organized groups." For local positions, they can bargain for the employment of their own members, in exchange for perpetual political support. "They may ask the mayor or the governor that a certain percentage of the employment be given to INC members," Surla said. But INC spokesman Edwil Zabala, in a separate interview, strongly denied that the INC bloc-vote has strings attached to it. "We vote, that's it. It is one of the misconceptions that after voting, we do other things. Those who assert that, they should be the ones providing proof for their assertion. We vote, that's all."

Bloc voting is also only practiced inside the Philippines and has never been practiced by members abroad given that election laws existing within their respective countries might bar it. An example in the United States is the Johnson Amendment, a provision in the U.S. tax code since 1954 that prohibits all 501(c)(3) non-profit organizations from endorsing or opposing political candidates. INC has presence in the United States as a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, and a conduct of bloc voting there similar to their churches in the Philippines will violate the Johnson Amendment that may lead to Internal Revenue Service investigations and a warrant of revocation of tax-exempt status.

Criticism

Edu Manzano, who ran for vice mayor in 1998 (won) and mayor in 2001 (lost) in Makati said that "letting the people decide the election rather than a bloc vote endorsement is better". In both instances INC endorsed his opponents Ernesto Mercado in 1998, and MMDA Chairman Jejomar Binay in 2001. Also, Gwendolyn Garcia in 2007 berated some church officials and accusing them of "endorsement for sale", as Garcia's opponents were endorsed.

Endorsements (nationally-elected candidates) The following is the list of candidates who have been elected by the Iglesia ni Cristo. The list is limited to candidates running for president, vice president, and senators.

President Year Rank Candidate Party Votes% Result 1935 1. Manuel Quezon 695,332 67.99 1941 1. Manuel Quezon 1,340,320 81.78 1946 1. Manuel Roxas 1,333,392 53.94 1949 3. Jose Avelino 419,890 11.85 1961 2. Carlos P. Garcia 2,902,996 44.95 The Winners ’61, November, 1961. November 1961. The Philippines Free Press. 1965 1. Ferdinand Marcos 3,861,324 51.94 1969 1. Ferdinand Marcos 5,017,343 61.47 1981 1. Ferdinand Marcos 18,309,360 88.02 1986 1. Ferdinand Marcos 10,807,197 53.62 1992 3. Danding Cojuangco 4,116,376 18.17 1998 1. Joseph Estrada 10,722,295 39.86 2004 1. Gloria Macapagal Arroyo 12,905,808 39.99 2010 1. Benigno Aquino III 15,208,678 42.08 2016 1. Rodrigo Duterte 16,601,997 39.02 2022 1. Bongbong Marcos 31,629,783 58.77

Vice President Year Rank Candidate Party Votes% Result 1961 2. Sergio Osmeña, Jr. 2,190,424 34.37 1969 2. Genaro Magsaysay 2,968,526 37.24 How Lopez won. November 1969. The Philippines Free Press. 1992 1. Joseph Estrada 6,739,738 33.01 1998 1. Gloria Macapagal Arroyo 12,667,252 49.56 2004 1. Noli de Castro 15,100,431 49.80 2010 2. Mar Roxas 13,918,490 39.58 2016 2. Bongbong Marcos 14,155,344 34.47 2022 1. Sara Duterte 32,208,417 61.53

Senators 1995 The following list is incomplete, but endorsed 7 candidates from Lakas–Laban Coalition, and 5 candidates from Nationalist People's Coalition. Rank Candidate Party Coalition Votes% Result 5. Juan Flavier 10,748,528 41.76 6. Miriam Defensor Santiago 9,497,231 36.90 9. Gringo Honasan 8,968,616 34.853 15. Bongbong Marcos 8,168,768 31.74

2001 Rank Candidate Party Coalition Votes% Result 1. Noli de Castro 16,237,386 55.09 2 Juan Flavier 11,735,897 39.82 3. Serge Osmeña 11,593,389 39.33 4. Franklin Drilon 11,301,700 38.34 5. Joker Arroyo 11,262,402 38.21 6. Jun Magsaysay 11,250,677 38.17 7. Manny Villar 11,187,375 37.96 8. Kiko Pangilinan 10,971,896 37.23 9. Ed Angara 10,805,177 36.66 10. Panfilo Lacson 10,535,559 35.74 11. Loi Ejercito 10,524,130 35.71 12. Ralph Recto 10,480,940 35.56 15. Miriam Defensor Santiago 9,622,742 32.65

2004 Rank Candidate Party Coalition Votes% Result 1. Mar Roxas 19,372,888 54.56 2 Bong Revilla 15,801,531 44.50 3. Nene Pimentel 13,519,998 38.07 4. Jamby Madrigal 13,253,692 37.32 7. Miriam Defensor Santiago 12,187,401 34.32 8. Alfredo Lim 11,286,428 31.78 9. Juan Ponce Enrile 11,191,162 31.52 10. Jinggoy Estrada 11,094,120 31.24 12. Rodolfo Biazon 10,635,270 29.95 13. Robert Barbers 10,624,585 29.92 14. Ernesto Maceda 9,944,328 28.00 15. John Henry Osmeña 9,914,179 27.92

2007 Rank Candidate Party Coalition Votes% Result 1 Loren Legarda 18,501,734 62.72 2 Chiz Escudero 18,265,307 61.92 3 Ping Lacson 15,509,188 52.58 4 Manny Villar 15,338,412 52.00 5 Kiko Pangilinan 14,534,678 49.27 6 Noynoy Aquino 14,309,349 48.51 7 Ed Angara 12,657,769 42.91 8 Joker Arroyo 11,803,107 40.01 12 Migz Zubiri 11,005,866 37.31 14 Ralph Recto 10,721,252 36.34 14 Mike Defensor 9,938,995 33.69 19 Tito Sotto 7,638,361 25.89

2010 Rank Candidate Party Votes% Result 1. Bong Revilla 19,513,521 51.15 2. Jinggoy Estrada 18,925,925 49.61 3. Miriam Defensor Santiago 17,344,74245.47 4. Franklin Drilon 15,871,117 41.60 5. Juan Ponce Enrile 15,665,618 41.06 6. Pia Cayetano 13,679,511 35.86 7. Bongbong Marcos 13,169,634 34.52 8. Ralph Recto 12,436,960 32.60 9. Tito Sotto 11,891,711 31.17 11. Lito Lapid 11,025,805 28.90 12. TG Guingona 10,277,352 26.94 16. Ruffy Biazon 8,626,514 22.61

2013 Rank Candidate Party Coalition Votes% Result 1 Grace Poe 20,337,327 50.66 2 Loren Legarda 18,661,196 46.49 3 Alan Peter Cayetano 17,580,813 43.79 5 Nancy Binay 16,812,148 41.88 6 Sonny Angara 16,005,564 39.87 7 Bam Aquino 15,534,465 38.70 9 Sonny Trillanes 14,127,722 35.19 10 Cynthia Villar 13,822,854 34.43 11 JV Ejercito 13,684,736 34.09 12 Gringo Honasan 13,211,424 32.91 13 Dick Gordon 12,501,991 31.14 15 Jack Enrile 11,543,024 28.75

2016 Rank Candidate Party Coalition Votes% Result 1 Franklin Drilon 18,607,391 41.37 2 Joel Villanueva 18,459,22241.04 3 Tito Sotto 17,200,371 38.24 4 Panfilo Lacson 16,926,152 37.63 5 Richard "Dick" Gordon 16,719,322 37.17 6 Migz Zubiri 16,119,165 35.84 7 Manny Pacquiao 16,050,546 35.68 9 Risa Hontiveros 15,915,213 35.38 10 Sherwin Gatchalian 14,953,768 33.25 11 Ralph Recto 14,271,868 31.73 13 Francis Tolentino 12,811,098 28.48 15 Martin Romualdez 12,325,824 27.40

2019