{
  "id": 17361213,
  "title": "Philippines: Macacua elected first BARMM Chief Minister in 51–27 vote",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/31/philippines-macacua-elected-first-barmm-chief-minister-in-51-27-vote",
  "topic": "world",
  "section": "World",
  "published": "2026-10-31T07:00:34.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Gulf News",
    "slug": "gulf-news",
    "url": "https://gulfnews.com/world/asia/philippines/philippines-macacua-elected-first-barmm-chief-minister-in-5127-vote-1.500730560"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "On Friday, Abdulraof \"Sammy Gambar\" Macacua, 69, was elected the inaugural Chief Minister of the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) following a 51-27 vote in the first regular Bangsamoro Parliament held in Cotabato City. Macacua, a member of the Bangsamoro Federalist Party, defeated Ahod \"Al Haj Murad\" Ebrahim, who represented the United Bangsamoro Justice Party, marking a shift from the former MILF-led political bloc. Ebrahim received 27 votes, while one MP abstained and another was absent. With 51 votes, Macacua also secured the Speaker position, defeating former Bangsamoro Transition Authority Speaker Mohammad Yacob by the same margin. Macacua, who previously led the Bangsamoro Islamic Armed Forces and served as a senior minister in the BARMM, is now tasked with balancing peace commitments, local expectations, and national government support while leading BARMM’s first elected parliament.",
  "summary": "Abdulraof “Sammy Gambar” Macacua, 69, was elected the first Chief Minister of the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao on Friday, defeating former interim Chief Minister Ahod “Al Haj Murad” Ebrahim in the inaugural session of the first regular Bangsamoro Parliament in Cotabato City. Macacua, who heads the Bangsamoro Federalist Party, was nominated by MP Kitem Kadatuan. Ebrahim, of the…",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}