Legislative district of Surigao

The legislative district of Surigao was the representation of the historical province of Surigao in the various national legislatures of the Philippines until the election of representatives for its successor provinces in 1961. The undivided province's representation encompassed the present-day provinces of Surigao del Norte, Surigao del Sur and Dinagat Islands.

History

Surigao initially comprised a lone district for the purposes of electing representatives to the First Philippine Assembly in 1907. When seats for the upper house of the Philippine Legislature were elected from territory-based districts between 1916 and 1935, the province formed part of the eleventh senatorial district which elected two out of the 24-member Senate.

During the Second World War, two delegates represented Surigao in the National Assembly of the Japanese-sponsored Second Philippine Republic: one was the provincial governor (an ex officio member), while the other was elected through a provincial assembly of KALIBAPI members during the Japanese occupation of the Philippines. Upon the restoration of the Philippine Commonwealth in 1945, the province continued to constitute a single representative district.

The enactment of Republic Act No. 2786 on 19 June 1960 split Surigao into Surigao del Norte and Surigao del Sur, and provided each province separate representation in Congress.[1] The new provinces first elected their separate representatives in the 1961 elections.

Lone District (defunct)

Period	Representative[2]
1st Philippine Legislature 1907–1909	Francisco Soriano
2nd Philippine Legislature 1909–1912	Manuel G. Gavieres^1
	Inocencio Cortez^2
3rd Philippine Legislature 1912–1916
4th Philippine Legislature 1916–1919	Eusebio Tiongko
5th Philippine Legislature 1919–1922
6th Philippine Legislature 1922–1925	Clemente V. Diez
7th Philippine Legislature 1925–1928	Montano A. Ortiz
8th Philippine Legislature 1928–1931
9th Philippine Legislature 1931–1934	Vicente Gonzaga
10th Philippine Legislature 1934–1935	Ricardo Navarro
1st National Assembly 1935–1938	Clementino V. Diez^3
	Ricardo Navarro^4
2nd National Assembly 1938–1941
3rd National Assembly 1941–1946
1st Congress 1946–1949
2nd Congress 1949–1953	Felixberto Verano^5
	vacant
3rd Congress 1953–1957	Reynaldo P. Honrado^6
	vacant
4th Congress 1957–1961	Reynaldo P. Honrado

^1 Died in 1910.[2]

^2 Assumed office after winning special election held on 14 October 1910 to fill vacant seat.[2]

^3 Unseated in 1938 after losing election protest to Ricardo Navarro.

^4 Replaced Clementino V. Diez in 1938 after winning election protest and being rightfully declared elected.[2]

^5 Elected in 1951 to the Senate; seat remained vacant until the end of the 2nd Congress.

^6 Appointed Justice of the Peace, 1955; seat remained vacant until the end of the 3rd Congress.[2]

At-Large (defunct)

Period	Representatives[2]
National Assembly 1943–1944	Jose D. Cortes[3]
	Fernando C. Silvosa (ex officio)[3]

See also

• Legislative district of Surigao del Norte
  • Legislative district of Dinagat Islands
• Legislative district of Surigao del Sur

References

1. Congress of the Philippines (19 June 1960). "Republic Act No. 2786 - An Act to Create the Provinces of Surigao del Norte and Surigao del Sur". Chan Robles Virtual Law Library. Retrieved 27 November 2017.
2. Congressional Library Bureau. "Roster of Philippine Legislators". Republic of the Philippines, House of Representatives. Retrieved 7 February 2017.
3. Official program of the inauguration of the Republic of the Philippines and the induction into office of His Excellency Jose P. Laurel. Bureau of Printing. 1943.