6 p.m. The Philippines' bicameral Congress is modelled on the U.S., with a House of Representatives and Senate. All House members are elected every three years while Senators serve for six years with half being elected in the midterms and half at the same time as the president.

Voting has closed in the Philippines’ high-stakes midterm elections, with more than 69 million people eligible to cast their ballots. Polls stayed open till 7pm local time in a vote seen as a proxy war between the powerful Marcos and Duterte clans.

For the ruling elite the election was a referendum over geopolitical ties. For the mass of voters it was an expression of anger over the social crisis they confront.

MANILA: Voters dealt President Ferdinand Marcos Jr a stinging blow in the Philippines' midterm elections that weakened his grip on the Senate, while boosting Vice-President Sara Duterte's allies just weeks before an impeachment trial against his deputy.

In political rallies, Senate hearings and voter surveys ahead of Monday's midterm elections in the Philippines, China has been an overwhelming - and unusual - presence. The shadow of its giant maritime neighbour has loomed over the Philippines for years,

AT LEAST five people were killed and rampant vote buying were reported amid the conduct of the midterm elections in the Catholic-majority Philippines on Monday,

Marred by concerns over machine malfunctions and overvoting, the 2025 midterm elections have officially closed, the Commission on Elections said.

Millions of people turned out to voted in midterm elections in the Philippines on Monday, with detained former president Rodrigo Duterte among the candidates vying for some 18,000 national and local seats.