1998 Naga, Camarines Sur, local elections

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1998 Naga, Camarines Sur, local elections
Naga City CamSur Seal.svg
  1995 May 11, 1998 (1998-05-11) 2001  
Mayoral election
 
Flag of Naga, Camarines Sur.png
HoR Official Portrait Luis Raymund Villafuerte Jr.jpg
CandidateSulpicio S. Roco Luis Raymund Villafuerte Jr.
Party Aksyon LAMMP
Popular vote32,15714,329
Percentage62.88%28.02%

Mayor before election

Jesse M. Robredo
Lakas

Elected mayor

Sulpicio S. Roco
Aksyon

Vice Mayoral election
 
CandidateEsteban AbonalJuan Benito Dematera
Party Aksyon LAMMP
Popular vote23,2679,774
Percentage48.01%20.17%

Vice Mayor before election

Lourdes V. Asence
Lakas

Elected Vice Mayor

Esteban Abonal
Aksyon

Local elections were held in Naga, Camarines Sur, on May 11, 1998, as part of the 1998 Philippine general election. Voters elected a mayor, vice mayor, ten members of the city council, and a representative for the second congressional district.

Contents

Incumbent mayor Jesse Robredo was term-limited after serving three consecutive terms and endorsed Sulpicio S. Roco Jr., who won the mayoral race with a landslide 62.9% of the vote under the banner of Aksyon Demokratiko. He defeated Luis Raymund Villafuerte Jr., among others. Robredo's coalition swept the elections, securing the vice mayoralty and all ten city council seats. [1]

Background

In 1995, Mayor Jesse Robredo of the Lakas–NUCD was re-elected for a third and final consecutive term, continuing the reform-oriented agenda he had championed since taking office in 1988. His administration was widely credited for transforming Naga into a model city for participatory governance, transparency, and urban innovation. Under his leadership, Naga received national and international recognition, including the prestigious Ramon Magsaysay Award for Government Service in 2000.

As Robredo was term-limited by 1998, his party sought to retain control of city hall by endorsing former city administrator Sulpicio S. Roco as their standard-bearer under the newly aligned Aksyon Demokratiko. Roco was a close ally of Robredo and positioned his campaign as a continuation of the Robredo legacy.

The 1998 elections also saw the entry of Luis Raymund Villafuerte Jr., son of former Camarines Sur governor Luis Villafuerte, into local politics. Running under the LAMMP coalition aligned with then-presidential candidate Joseph Estrada, Villafuerte aimed to wrest control of Naga City from the reformist camp. Other contenders included former city councilors and independent candidates, though none matched the popularity or organizational strength of the Robredo-aligned slate.

The election was seen as a critical test of whether Robredo's reform coalition could sustain its dominance beyond his tenure. In a decisive result, Roco won the mayoralty by a wide margin, and the administration's ticket swept all city council seats, reaffirming the coalition’s hold on power in Naga.

Mayoral election

Source: [2]

Candidates

Results

1998 Naga City mayoral election
CandidatePartyVotes%
Sulpicio S. Roco Aksyon 32,15762.88
Luis Raymund Villafuerte Jr. LMMP 14,32928.02
J. Agapito Tria Lakas-NUCD 2,4354.76
Lourdes V. Asence Liberal Party 2,1034.11
Edmundo MagistradoIndependent700.14
Glinton ErvasIndependent350.07
Leonor AbiasIndependent120.02
Total51,141100.00
Aksyon gain from Lakas-NUCD
Source: Quick count of the National Citizens' Movement for Free Elections (Namfrel)

Vice mayoral election

Results

1998 Naga City vice mayoral election
CandidatePartyVotes%
Esteban Abonal Aksyon 23,26748.01
Juan Benito Dematera LMMP 9,77420.17
Jose Tuazon Lakas-NUCD 8,02116.55
Jorge de Guzman Liberal Party 7,40315.27
Total48,465100.00
Aksyon gain from Lakas-NUCD
Source: Quick count of the National Citizens' Movement for Free Elections (Namfrel)

City Council election

Source: [3]

Ten city councilors were elected. All ten winning candidates came from the Aksyon Demokratiko slate backed by mayoral winner Sulpicio Roco. The opposition candidates, primarily from LAMMP and the Liberal Party, failed to win any seats.

Results

1998 Naga City councilor election
CandidatePartyVotes%
Gabriel Bordado Jr. Aksyon 22,0418.71
Jose Rañola Aksyon 21,5998.54
Simeon Adan Aksyon 20,3328.04
Fiel Rosales Aksyon 19,6337.76
William Kalaw Aksyon 18,9047.47
Cecilia de Asis Aksyon 18,2727.22
Rodolfo Z. Fortuno Aksyon 16,6696.59
Francisco Felizmenio Aksyon 16,4426.50
Mila Arroyo Aksyon 15,3986.09
Jose Grageda Aksyon 15,2576.03
Maria Lucia Carpio LMMP 14,9055.89
Jojo Villafuerte LMMP 14,6425.79
Benjamin Lucena Jr. Liberal Party 13,2435.23
Romeo S. Tayo LMMP 12,8805.09
Roland D. Cabral LMMP 12,7585.04
Total252,975100.00
Source: Quick count of the National Citizens' Movement for Free Elections (Namfrel) [1]

References

  1. 1 2 Kawanaka, Takeshi (2002). Power in a Philippine City. Chiba: Institute of Developing Economies, Japan External Trade Organization. pp. 51–52. ISBN   4-258-52038-1.
  2. "Namfrel Quick Count – Naga City Local Elections, 1998". National Citizens' Movement for Free Elections (Namfrel). Retrieved 2025-05-26.
  3. "COMELEC Official Results – 1998 Local Elections". Commission on Elections (Philippines). Retrieved 2025-05-26.