The Philippine Legislature, in whom legislative powers were vested, was a bicameral legislative body composed of a Senate and a House of Representatives. The Jones Law gave the Philippine Legislature general legislative powers, with limitations that all laws affecting immigration, currency, coinage or tariff and those pertaining to lands of public domain, timber, mining are subject to the approval of the President of the United States of America. It also gave the Filipinos greater participation in government through the power of confirmation over the appointments of officers in the Executive and Judicial branches of the government.
During its 19-year existence the country went through seven elections —from 1916 to 1934—to elect members of both chambers of the Legislature. In the first election, on the first Tuesday of October 1916, two senators were elected from each of the 12 senatorial districts—one for a term of six years; the other for three years. In the subsequent general elections, there was to be elected from each district one senator for six years. There were two appointive members for the Senate who were designated by the American governor-general to represent the non-Christian areas of the Archipelago. The elective Representatives served for three years, while the Senators, except half of the 22 who won in the first senatorial race in 1916, had a six-year tenure.
The 24-man Philippine Senate was represented by two Senators from each of the 12 senatorial districts into which the country was divided. Eleven of the districts were represented by Senators elected by qualified voters in their respective bailiwicks. The twelfth senatorial district, which was then generally inhabited by non-Christian Filipinos, was represented by two appointive Senators who had no fixed terms. The two appointive Senators were Joaquin A. Clarin and Jadji Butu representing the provinces in Mindanao, Mountain province and Baguio from 1916 to 1918, with the latter only being reappointed in 1926.
Altogether, there were 67 Senators who served in the Philippine Senate at one time or another from 1916 to 1935. Over half of these senior solons were reelected at least once. A number of them were elected several times, as in the case of Manuel L. Quezon who repeatedly served as Senator from 1916 to 1935, when he assumed the Presidency of the Philippine Commonwealth. Senate President Pro Tempore Sergio Osmeña who was first elected Senator in 1922 was also a multi-term Senator who later emerged as Vice-President.
Leadership at the top of the Senate hierarchy was quite firm during its existence through the strong stewardship of Senate President Quezon. Reelected three times in a row, he lorded it over the Senate since its founding and relinquished it only when he became President of the Commonwealth.
During its existence, the Philippine Legislature enacted altogether 1,619 laws, covering all subjects of legislation, except foreign affairs.
The Philippine Legislature closed its career in the service of our people to pave the way for the final preparations for the framing and adoption of the Philippine Constitution and the establishment of the Commonwealth of the Philippines, which were conditions precedent for the attainment of our political independence.
On May 1, 1934, it accepted the Tydings-McDuffie Law, which authorized the framing of the Philippine Constitution.