Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo Biography

Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo

Daughter of the late Philippine President Diosdado Macapagal, Macapagal-Arroyo graduated from Assumption College in the Philippines, holds a master’s degree in economics from Ateneo de Manila University, and a Ph.D. in economics from the University of the Philippines. After teaching economics, Macapagal-Arroyo became former President Corazon Aquino’s Undersecretary of Trade and Industry. She was elected senator in 1992, winning reelection in 1995 in a landslide. In 1998 Macapagal-Arroyo easily won the vice presidency. She assumed the presidency in January 2001 when street demonstrations forced Joseph Estrada, who faced serious corruption allegations, from office. She is married to lawyer and businessman Jose Miguel Tuason Arroyo. They have three children, Mikey, Luli, and Dato.