The party was founded by Joel Rocamora in the 1990s after he left the Communist Party of the Philippines over ideological differences with its founder and leader, Jose Maria Sison. Sison maintained a commitment within the Communist Party of the Philippines to Marxist–Leninist-Maoist principles, which some members, including Rocamora, disagreed with. Akbayan has been critical of abuses committed by some members of the Armed Forces of the Philippines against fellow activists. It has also been critical of the Communist Party of the Philippines, particularly their actions in the countryside against peasant groups and communities and what they see as the Maoist group's extortion activities. Due to its stance against right-wing extremism and the Maoist far-left, Akbayan has been a target by both political groups. During the administration of former President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, Akbayan was among the opposition groups repressed by the government. It was also during this time that Akbayan suffered its lowest number of votes, with just over 400,000 votes in 2007. In 2009, Akbayan supported the presidential candidacy of then Senator Benigno Simeon Aquino III. Fueled by the popular discontent with the outgoing administration of former President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, Aquino won the presidency by a large margin. This was also the first time that Akbayan was able to breach the 1 million vote mark, its best performance to that date. Despite the vote increase, however, it failed to secure three seats in the House of Representatives owing to a Supreme Court decision which ensured only the leading party list in the election would secure three seats. Akbayan has been noted to oppose the increased incursions of the People's Republic of China naval and coast guard vessels into Philippine territorial waters and within the country's 200-nautical mile Exclusive Economic Zone. In 2016, they allied themselves with the Liberal Party and the Magdalo Group, supporting Mar Roxas and Leni Robredo's campaigns and criticizing other candidates. After the election, they joined the Magnificent 7, a group of Liberal Party and Magdalo members. They publicly criticized several policies, including Duterte's handling of the Philippine Drug War and the TRAIN Law. Akbayan has affiliate groups that represent government employees, women workers, migrants, as well as members of the LGBT community. The party's official website states that Akbayan is an activist organisation "and proud of it", and that it "vehemently condemn torture, assassination, and other violent acts that undermine human rights and freedoms regardless of whoever commits them".
Republic Act 11166 – HIV and AIDS Policy Act of 2018
Electoral performance
Akbayan is only one of two parties to win seats in all party list elections in the Philippines. Furthermore, Akbayan is the only party to surpass the 2% election threshold in all elections until the 2016 election where they fell short by 0.12%.
