Researchers and professors from the Ateneo de Manila University are pushing for an anti-political dynasty law that limits political participation to relatives within the second degree of consanguinity and allows only “thin dynasties,” where family members may run successively but not simultaneously for elective posts.
“Thin” dynasty occurs when a political family has members who follow each other in elected positions over time, while a “fat” dynasty refers to a political family that simultaneously holds elective positions.
First-degree relatives include parents and children, while second-degree relatives include siblings, grandparents, and grandchildren.
In a January 2025 paper, the authors stressed that banning relatives up to the second degree of consanguinity from holding office at the same time is the most politically viable way to curb excessive concentration of power while preserving voter choice.
“Our proposal for practical political viability of the dynasty regulation law is simple: ‘bawal ang sabay-sabay pero pwede nang payagan ang sunod-sunod.’ Democracy can still thrive when families choose to succeed each other only one at a time,” the paper stated, adding that fat dynasties weaken checks-and-balances, result in bad governance, and lead to weaker development outcomes.
Drawing from the Sangguniang Kabataan Reform Act, the researchers recommend restricting dynasties up to the second degree, saying this strikes a balance between reform and enforceability.
“The anti-dynasty provision in the Sangguniang Kabataan Reform Act already leads the way in possible reform. This regulates dynasties up to the 2nd degree of consanguinity, allowing many political clans to continue to field their ‘best performing’ and ‘most experienced’ family members,” they said.
“It will remove the worst performing and meagerly prepared*,* and this should lead to a marked improvement in public policymaking and governance,” they added.
Based on their estimates, if the second-degree limit is applied to the rest of the political system, at least 25 percent of local elected positions could be freed for new political leaders.
They also warned that tracing relations beyond the 2nd level poses operational challenges and risks undermining implementation.
“Drawing on the existing experience with the SK Law, a restriction up to the 2nd degree may work best, given the operational challenges of tracing linkages up to the 4th degree. Such prohibition must apply to multiple territories, or to both local and national elections, and to the party-list system as well,” it stressed.
For the anti-dynasty law to be fully effective, they underscored the need for the inclusion of two key provisions.
First, the law must clearly state that no person shall be allowed to run for a national or local office when it is established upon the filing of a certificate of candidacy that he or she is related within the 2nd degree of consanguinity or affinity to a candidate with a duly filed certificate of candidacy for any national or local position.
Second, the statute must task an agency to enforce the law and specify the actions it can pursue to ensure its full implementation.
“It will help in implementation if many of these processes are triggered upon the filing of certificates of candidacy, in order to clarify dynastic links well before elections,” the paper emphasized.
Both the Senate and House of Representatives are tackling various anti-dynasty proposals, each imposing different limitations on consanguinity and scope of coverage.
