Hung Parliament: Philippines' BARMM Elections End With No Party Winning Majority

(MENAFN- Khaleej Times) The Philippine Commission on Elections (COMELEC) officially proclaimed the winners of the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) parliamentry elections shortly after midnight on Wednesday.

The hotly contested polls – characterised by hyper-partisanship, deaths of supporters and civilians, fraud, riots and factionalism within the movement that fought with blood and arms for decades and led to the creation of the Bangsamoro nation – are over.

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The BARMM parliament will have a total of 80 seats (40 party representatives; 32 district representatives; eight sectoral representatives). Of the 40 party-contested seats, the Bangsamoro Federalist Party (BFP) secured 16 seats, followed by the Moro Islamic Liberation Front's (MILF) United Bangsamoro Justice Party (UBJP) with 15 seats. BARMM Grand Coalition (BGC) got 8 seats; while Raayat Democratic Party, affiliated with the MILF, won one seat.

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The BGC party, composed of some of the region's traditional political dynasties and with eight seats, placed itself as the potential kingmaker with whomever it decides to coalesce to form a ruling majority in the new BARMM parliament.

Who would be district and sectoral representatives?

Of the 32 district representatives, Comelec declared 15 winners belong to BFP, nine to UBJP, six to Serbisyong Inklusibo Alyansang Progresibo (SIAP), and one each for the Progresibong Bangsamoro and Al-Ittihad-UKB parties.

The last two parties have been reported as affiliated with MILF-UBJP and BFP, respectively.

For the settler community sector, Yul Adelfo Olaya and Mary Ann Arnado emerged as winners, while Aida Silongan, Sulffy Abbas, Muhammad Nadzir Ebil, and Marjanie Mimbantas-Macasalong secured seats representing the women, youth, ulama, and traditional leaders sectors, respectively.

Meanwhile, on Aug. 25, 2026, the Teduray and Lambangian communities selected Jo Glenna Jover and Leticio Datuwata, respectively, as their nominees in accordance with their customary laws.

Race for 41

BFP will have 32 votes when the new BARMM Parliament opens on October 30, while the UBJP has 26. They are expected to begin negotiations with the BGC, SIAP and the eight sectoral representatives in a race to 41 votes for the formation of the majority.

The majority, expected to vote along party lines, will decide on who will sit as the BARMM's first elected Chief Minister, Speaker of the Parliament and Sargeant-at-Arms. It will also form the new autonomous government within the Philippine Republic with a current annual budget of P105 billion (Dh6.25 billion) for its nearly five million residents.

Is it really over?

The voting may be over, but the division between the winning parties may not be.

The BFP was formed by MILF stalwart Abdulraof Macacua, who developed a rift with long-time comrade-in-arms and MILF Chairman Ahod“Al Haj Murad” Ebrahim in March last year.

This happened after President Ferdinand Marcos Jr appointed Macacua – then Maguindanao del Norte governor and head of the MILF's military wing, the Bangsamoro Islamic Armed Forces or BIAF – to succeed Murad as interim BARMM Chief Minister.

The appointment divided the MILF between factions loyal to Murad and those supporting Macacua. As interim chief minister, Macacua made unilateral appointments and removals - including replacing Education minister Mohagher Iqbal, an ally of Murad - which drew heavy criticism from the MILF leadership.

The MILF Central Committee struck back at Macacua by indefinitely suspending its former military commander and several base commanders for insubordination, which became an official stripping of all BIAF positions a few days before the elections.

Macacua ran as an independent in last Monday's polls.

Political observers noted Monday's elections should have been a turning point in the five-decade struggle of the Bangsamoro for historical justice and self-determination. After seven postponements, the exercise to choose the composition of their parliament and autonomous government was thought to put an end to years of bloodshed and struggle.

With an incomplete“regularisation” of all Bangsamoro fighters under the interim government and an untold number of firearms in the hands of many, Monday's firefights were ominous signs of the real situation in a land seeking peace and justice for generations.

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