Philippines: Blighted Win

Nobody was there to beat

It was the first presidential election in twelve years, but for most Filipinos the event had an air of unreality. From the beginning there had never been any question about who the winner would be: Ferdinand Marcos, 63, head of state through two elected terms and more than eight years of martial-law rule. After running against only token opposition, Marcos claimed victory last week, with 87% of the vote. The only issue: how many Filipinos had defied a compulsory-voting law by heeding an opposition call for a boycott of the election. Marcos...