The problem, though, with Leni’s campaign was that, unlike Miriam’s, her team was not able to frame its narrative correctly.
KAKAMPINK supporters hold up a ‘Never Again, Never Forget’ placard at a 2022 campaign rally for then-presidential candidate Leni Robredo, a slogan now at the heart of the debate over a rumored Marcos-opposition alliance that labor leader Luke Espiritu has branded a ‘kiss of death’ for the anti-Duterte camp.
PHOTOGRAPH courtesy of agence france-presse
The Kakampinks had, by far, the best candidate in Leni Robredo. No record of corruption. Simple. Relatable. Someone who represented good governance.
This is why her team decided to surround her with narratives that took advantage of this persona, eventually culminating in a good-versus-evil spin that, for the most part, became the rallying point of her campaign.
Historically, this narrative works well because it gives people simple moral clarity, taps into deep human emotions and resonates with young people who, expectedly, don’t trust government institutions, leaders and the justice system.
When the late Miriam Defensor-Santiago ran in 1992, it was the same narrative that catapulted her to almost winning the presidency as Filipinos from all walks of life pooled their resources to launch and run her campaign. Were it not for dagdag-bawas, she would have been our second female president.
The problem, though, with Leni’s campaign was that, unlike Miriam’s, her team was not able to frame its narrative correctly. Instead of wooing the broader masses, they alienated them with vitriolic diatribes that basically pushed them away, branding them as dumb and stupid for their support of the UniTeam.
In fact, while her main campaign slogan of “Radical Love” and “pink” branding appealed strongly to the middle- to upper-class intelligentsia, it was seen as too elitist, if not outright abstract, by the lower economic classes, who obviously gravitated toward UniTeam’s much simpler and more relatable slogan.
Instead of selling her and what she could offer, they focused heavily on attacking her opponents, making her platform look purely anti-Marcos rather than a forward-looking, independent vision for the country.
Of course, it also didn’t help that she was up against a formidable Marcos-Duterte coalition that basically consolidated the voting power of the solid north and south, leaving her with very narrow mathematical pathways to victory.
For sure, there were other factors that would explain her defeat. But her failure to connect with the working class really hurt the most.
Now that 2028 is fast approaching, the Kakampinks are once again poised to give it another try. Sadly, it seems they have not really learned their lesson well, as most of them are back to the same gimmick that previously crucified them.
The fact that their leadership chose to align with the President surely exacerbates this further.
Well, there’s still time left to recalibrate. The clock, though, is ticking.
