Mayor of Manila


The Mayor of Manila is the head of the executive branch of the Manila's government. The mayor holds office at Manila City Hall. Like all local government heads in the Philippines, the mayor is elected via popular vote, and may not be elected for a fourth consecutive term. In case of death, resignation or incapacity, the vice mayor becomes the mayor.

History

Prior to the arrival of Miguel López de Legazpi, Manila was a Muslim chiefdom headed by datus. From the defeat of Rajah Sulayman's forces in 1595 to the passage of the Maura Law in 1895, the chief executive of the city was appointed by the Spanish government to a person of Spanish descent. The highest position a Filipino was able to hold was the cabeza de barangay. With the passage of the Maura Law, the office of capitan municipal was established, with the people electing their own town heads, although the Spanish retained considerable influence and can veto decisions.
With the eruption of the Philippine Revolution and the Philippine–American War, the position reverted to an appointive head. With the advent of World War II, President Manuel L. Quezon appointed Jorge B. Vargas as mayor of the City of Greater Manila in 1941. With the liberation of Manila in 1945 by combined Filipino and American soldiers under the United States Army and the Philippine Commonwealth Army including local recognized guerrillas against the Japanese Imperial forces, the earlier setup was used once again.
With the amendment of the city's charter in 1951, the position became an elective post. The first mayoral election was in 1951, and Manila's congressman from the 2nd district Arsenio Lacson defeated incumbent Manuel de la Fuente. A few years after the declaration of martial law by President Ferdinand Marcos, Manila and nearby cities like Quezon City, Caloocan, and Pasay, were overshadowed by the office of the governor of the newly created Metro Manila, whom Marcos appointed his wife, Imelda Marcos, to the position.
With Arsenio Lacson becoming the first elected Mayor, the City of Manila underwent The Golden Age, was revitalized, and once again became the "Pearl of the Orient", a moniker it earned before the outbreak of the war. After Mayor Lacson's term in the fifties, the city was led by Mayor Antonio Villegas during most of the 60's, and Mayor Ramon Bagatsing for nearly the entire decade of the 70's until the 1986 Edsa revolution.
Mayors Lacson, Villegas, and Bagatsing are often collectively considered as "the Big Three of Manila" for their rather long tenures as the City Hall's chief executive, but more importantly, for their indelible contribution to the development and progress of the City and their lasting legacy in uplifting the quality of life and welfare of the people of Manila.
With the ouster of Marcos during the People Power Revolution, President Corazon Aquino vacated all local executive officials and appointed officers in charge in their place; she appointed party-mate Mel Lopez as OIC of Manila. Local elections were held in 1988, and Lopez was elected as mayor. The Local Government Code was enacted in 1991, and standardized the powers of Manila's mayor making it at par with other cities in the country.
The office of the mayor is often used as a springboard for further political ambitions. In 1961, Lacson bolted the Nacionalista Party to become the campaign manager of the Liberal Party's Diosdado Macapagal's presidential campaign. After Macapagal's victory, Lacson returned with the Nacionalistas and became a critic of the Macapagal administration. Lacson would've been likely the Nacionalista's candidate for the presidency in 1965, had not death intervened in 1962. In 1998, the sitting mayor of Manila, Alfredo Lim, did run as the Liberal Party's candidate for the presidency, but was beaten by Joseph Estrada, finishing fifth in a field of ten candidates, garnering 9% of the vote.
The longest-serving mayor of the City of Manila is Mayor Ramon Bagatsing, who continuously served as the city's chief executive from 1971 until 1986. His tenure could have been longer if his term was not disrupted by the forced resignation of all local government unit heads and the appointment of officers in charge in their place after the 1986 revolution, to which Bagatsing fully supported and complied with, voluntarily handing over his position to the officer in charge Mel Lopez.
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List

Died in office
At this time, after the 1986 EDSA Revolution, President Cory Aquino forced the resignation of all local government unit heads and appointed officers in charge in their place.
Officer-in-charge
Resigned

Elections

The Vice Mayor is the second-highest official of the city. The vice mayor is elected via popular vote; although most mayoral candidates have running mates, the vice mayor is elected separately from the mayor. This can result in the mayor and the vice mayor coming from different political parties.
The Vice Mayor is the presiding officer of the Manila City Council, although they can only vote as the tiebreaker. When a mayor is removed from office, the vice mayor becomes the mayor until the scheduled next election.
#NameStart of termEnd of termFull name
1Ramón FernándezAugust 7, 1901August 7, 1911Ramón de Castro. Fernández
2Pablo D. OcampoAugust 8, 1911March 6, 1920Pablo De Leon. Ocampo
3Juan Posadas, Jr.March 7, 1920December 31, 1930Juan Pablo Posadas Jr.
4Jorge B. VargasJanuary 1, 1931January 4, 1940Jorge Bartolome Vargas
5Carmen PlanasJanuary 5, 1940August 28, 1941Carmen Lim Planas
6Hermenegildo AtienzaAugust 29, 1941July 17, 1944Hermenegildo Joaquin. Atienza
7Joaquin R. RocesJuly 18, 1944June 7, 1946Joaquin Reyes Roces
Carmen PlanasJune 7, 1946December 31, 1951Carmen Lim Planas
8Jesus M. R. RocesJanuary 1, 1952December 30, 1959Jesus Marcos Reyes Roces
9Antonio J. VillegasDecember 30, 1959April 15, 1962Antonio de Jesus. Villegas
10Herminio A. AstorgaApril 16, 1962December 31, 1967Herminio Aldaba Astorga
11Felicisimo R. CabigaoJanuary 1, 1968December 31, 1969Felicisimo Reyes Cabigao
12Leonardo B. FugosoJanuary 1, 1970December 31, 1970Leonardo Baloy Fugoso
13Gemiliano C. Lopez, Jr.January 1, 1971December 31, 1971Gemiliano Campos López, Jr.
14Martin B. Isidro, Sr.January 1, 1972December 31, 1975Martin Buenaventura Isidro, Sr.
15James Z. BarbersJanuary 1, 1976March 26, 1986James Zabala Barbers
16Bambi M. OcampoMarch 26, 1986April 27, 1987Bambi Malabanan Ocampo
17Ernesto A. NievaApril 28, 1987February 2, 1988Ernesto Acheco Nieva
18Danilo B. Lacuna, Sr.February 3, 1988January 31, 1992Danilo Bautista Lacuna, Sr.
19Ernesto V.P. Maceda, Jr.February 1, 1992June 30, 1992Ernesto Vera Perez Maceda, Jr.
20José L. Atienza, Jr.June 30, 1992March 27, 1998José Livioko Atienza, Jr.
Ernesto A. NievaMarch 27, 1998May 19, 1998Ernesto Acheco Nieva
21Hilario C. SilvaMay 20, 1998June 30, 1998Hilario Cuenca Silva
Danilo B. Lacuna, Sr.June 30, 1998June 30, 2007Danilo Bautista Lacuna, Sr.
22Isko Moreno DomagosoJune 30, 2007June 30, 2016Francisco Moreno Domagoso
23Ma. Sheilah "Honey" H. Lacuna-PanganJune 30, 2016PresentMa. Sheilah Honrado Lacuna