...The Philippines is a pluralist democracy modelled on the US, with an executive presidency, a bicameral Congress and a Supreme Court that can rule on the constitutionality of government actions. In January 2001 Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, then vice-president, replaced the incumbent president, Joseph Estrada, in a civilian coup backed by the military. She served out the remainder of his six-year term before winning re-election in her own right in the next presidential election, held in May 2004. The congressional elections held at the same time produced a large pro-administration majority, headed by Ms Macapagal Arroyo's party, Lakas ng Edsa-National Union of Christian Muslim Democrats (Lakas), in the House of Representatives (the lower house) and gave the president a narrow majority in the Senate (the upper house). The legality of Ms Macapagal Arroyo's rule was called into question in 2005, amid allegations of electoral fraud in the 2004 presidential election. She is likely to remain in office...
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