Francisco Javier "Francis" Manlapit Zamora (born December 5, 1977) is a Filipino politician, businessman, and former basketball player serving as the mayor of San Juan, Metro Manila since 2019. He is also concurrently the Chairman of the Metro Manila Council since 2022 and the national president of the League of Cities of the Philippines since 2025. He previously was San Juan's vice mayor from 2010 to 2016, and a council member from 2007 to 2010.[2]
After his college career, he played in major leagues, including the Philippine Basketball League for the teams Welcoat Paintmasters (where he won two championships in 1999 and 2000)[4] and Blu Detergent.[5] Zamora was the 35th overall draft pick by the Sta. Lucia Realtors in the 2001 PBA draft. However, he never played in the PBA after being sidelined for a proposed trade that would not materialize. He would then later return to PBL, playing for Montaña Jewels and ICTSI-La Salle. He retired from basketball in 2002.[6]
After two consecutive terms as vice mayor, Zamora ran for the mayoralty post in the 2016 elections. He faced the incumbent mayor Guia Gomez, promising to stop the dynasty of the Ejercito-Estradas, who, in his words, had run the city's politics for 47 years.[8] However, he narrowly lost the said election to Gomez.
In 2019, Zamora ran once again for the mayoralty post under the Partido Demokratiko Pilipino-Lakas ng Bayan (PDP–Laban) against incumbent vice mayor Janella Ejercito, the daughter of former mayor and senator Jinggoy Estrada who was endorsed by the administration-backed Hugpong ng Pagbabago her grandfather, former PresidentJoseph Estrada, and the outgoing mayor Guia Gomez. In the election, Zamora defeated Estrada by a margin of 10,247 votes, ending control of the Ejercito-Estrada clan of the city after 50 years.[9]
Zamora was reelected to a second consecutive term as mayor in 2022. On November 26, 2022, he was elected president of the Metro Manila Council (MMC) and co-chairperson of the Regional Development Council.[10] During his term, San Juan received its Seal of Good Local Governance in 2023.[6] He was reelected to his third consecutive term as mayor in 2025 and his second term as MMC president in the same year.[11] On August 8, 2025, he became the national president of League of Cities of the Philippines.[12]
Personal life
Zamora is the son and youngest child of Ronaldo Zamora, a long-time congressman in San Juan who served the city for almost two decades, with his wife Rosemarie "Mimi" Manlapit. He had an older sister named Consuelo Maria Zamora (1970–2008).[13] His half-sisters Ysabel Maria ("Bel") and Amparo Maria ("Pammy") also entered politics, having served as congresswomen from San Juan's lone district and Taguig's 2nd district, respectively.[14]
He married Keri Neri in 2001 and has four children.[5][15] His daughter, Amanda, is a model who competed as a housemate in the "Connect" season of Pinoy Big Brother in 2021, where she was eliminated in the last eviction alongside Ralph Malibunas.[16] His son, Rocco, serves as the Special Assistant to the Mayor during his term.[17]
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