At the age of 18, Marcos is thought to have assassinated Julio Nalundasan, a political opponent of his father, Mariano Marcos. Both were arrested and held until they were released by Supreme Court Justice José P. Laurel. Marcos served during World War II. As part of his election campaign, he would later claim to have been "the most decorated war hero in the Philippines", although in fact he received only three medals. Prior to Marcos's presidency, he served as a member of the Philippine House of Representatives from 1949 to 1959 and of the Philippine Senate from 1959 to 1965, where he was also Senate President from 1963 to 1965. He was elected President in 1965 after a successful campaign