Solid North

The Solid North refers to the regional voting bloc of the northern provinces of the Philippines^[1] for politicians of Ilocano descent, more particularly the Marcos family and their allies, and also economic issues affecting the Ilocanos in general such as the tobacco industry. Often included in Solid North are the provinces in the Ilocos Region, Cordillera Administrative Region (CAR), and Cagayan Valley.^[2]^[3] The regions are considered to be a conservative/right-wing bastion for the country.^[3]

The Solid North was most prominent during the presidency of Ferdinand Marcos Sr., but waned after his ouster as a result of the People Power Revolution; the north no longer delivered a reliable bloc vote from 1992^[2] until 2016, when Marcos' son, Ferdinand Marcos Jr., ran for the vice presidency in 2016 and won in the Solid North, except for Batanes.^[4]

Its southern counterpart, called Solid South (not to be confused with the American Solid South), refers to either part or all of Mindanao as a voting bloc, supporting politicians from Mindanao, especially the Duterte family and their allies. The term "Solid South" first emerged after then Davao City mayor Rodrigo Duterte won the presidency with a majority of provinces in Mindanao voting for him.^[3]^[5]

^ Pawilen, Reidan M. (May 2021). "The Solid North myth: an Investigation on the status of dissent and human rights during the Marcos Regime in Regions 1 and 2, 1969-1986". University of the Philippines Los Baños University Knowledge Digital Repository. Archived from the original on 2021-11-13. Retrieved 2022-05-22.
^ ^a ^b Nicolas, Fiona (October 9, 2015). "How many votes can the 'Solid North' deliver?". CNN Philippines. Archived from the original on October 10, 2015. Retrieved May 15, 2022.
^ ^a ^b ^c Pacia, Sara Isabelle (May 12, 2016). "Duterte can credit new 'Solid South,' NCR and Cebu for win". INQUIRER.net. Retrieved May 15, 2022.
^ "How regions voted for Robredo, Marcos in 2016 VP race". RAPPLER. 2016-05-15. Retrieved 2022-05-15.
^ "Move over 'Solid North,' 'Solid South' is new PH power base". ABS-CBN News. 2019-05-21.

[Pawilen2021SolidNorthMyth-1] Pawilen, Reidan M. (May 2021). "The Solid North myth: an Investigation on the status of dissent and human rights during the Marcos Regime in Regions 1 and 2, 1969-1986". University of the Philippines Los Baños University Knowledge Digital Repository. Archived from the original on 2021-11-13. Retrieved 2022-05-22.

[:0-2] Nicolas, Fiona (October 9, 2015). "How many votes can the 'Solid North' deliver?". CNN Philippines. Archived from the original on October 10, 2015. Retrieved May 15, 2022.

[:1-3] Pacia, Sara Isabelle (May 12, 2016). "Duterte can credit new 'Solid South,' NCR and Cebu for win". INQUIRER.net. Retrieved May 15, 2022.

[4] "How regions voted for Robredo, Marcos in 2016 VP race". RAPPLER. 2016-05-15. Retrieved 2022-05-15.

[5] "Move over 'Solid North,' 'Solid South' is new PH power base". ABS-CBN News. 2019-05-21.

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