Buhay Hayaan Yumabong (transl. Let Life Prosper), more popularly known as Buhay Party-List, is a party-list group in the Philippines founded on October 20, 1999, by Lito Atienza, Melquiades Robles, and El Shaddai founder Mike Velarde.[1][2] A socially conservative party-list, Buhay is known for its staunch opposition to abortion and birth control in its advocacy for the sanctity of life.[3] The party-list is also known for opposing the death penalty, divorce, same sex marriage, and euthanasia.[4]
In the 2004 elections for the House of Representatives, the party-list group won 705,730 votes (5.55% of the nationwide party-list vote), equivalent to two seats.[5][6] In 2007, the party won three seats in the nationwide party-list vote. In the 2010 elections, Buhay again won three seats, and ranked third overall.
In 2022, Buhay Party List lost their re-election bid after garnering only 103,077 votes, failing to win a single seat for the first time since their founding.[7]
Electoral performance
| Election | Votes | % | Seats | Member |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 | 290,760 | 1.92% | 2 | Christian Señeres Rene Velarde |
| 2004 | 705,730 | 5.55% | 2 | Christian Señeres Rene Velarde |
| 2007 | 1,169,234 | 7.33% | 3 | Ma. Carissa Coscolluela Irwin Tieng Rene Velarde |
| 2010 | 1,249,555 | 4.19% | 2 | Mike Velarde, Jr. Irwin Tieng |
| 2013 | 1,255,808 | 4.62% | 3 | Mike Velarde, Jr. Lito Atienza Irwin Tieng |
| 2016 | 760,912 | 2.35% | 2 | Mike Velarde, Jr. Lito Atienza |
| 2019 | 361,493 | 1.30% | 1 | Lito Atienza |
| 2022 | 103,077 | 0.28% | 0 | N/A (19th Congress) |
| 2025 | 99,365 | 0.24% | 0 | N/A (20th Congress) |
References
- 1."Buhay Partylist – Buhay Hayaan Yumabong". Retrieved February 7, 2022.
- 2."Party founded by Bro. Mike tops party-list race". ABS-CBN News.
- 3."Did Buhay party champion other interests?". ABS-CBN News.
- 4.Lebumfacil, Marigold. "Buhay Party-list to give pro-life advocates voice in Congress". Philstar.com. Retrieved February 7, 2022.
- 5.Congress Archived 2007-02-03 at the Wayback Machine, Congress Archived 2007-02-03 at the Wayback Machine
- 6.Comelec Archived 2007-04-27 at the Wayback Machine
- 7."Bayan Muna, Buhay, 9 others lose reelection bids in 2022 party-list race". Rappler. May 11, 2022. Retrieved June 3, 2023.