Mayor of Cebu City

Appointive position

Commonwealth Act No. 38 or the Charter of the City of Cebu, signed on October 20, 1936 and officially inaugurated on February 24, 1937, created the post of City Mayor which shall be appointed by the President of the Philippines with the approval of the Commission on Appointments. President Manuel Quezon appointed Alfredo V. Jacinto of Gapan, Nueva Ecija.^[6][7]

Born on March 23, 1891, Jacinto was not a Cebuano. His first assignment outside of Nueva Ecija was in Manila to become Chief Clerk of the Treasurer's Office of Malolos, Bulacan. Jacinto was transferred to Leyte and then to Pangasinan. In March 1930, he was sent to Cebu after his last assignment in Luzon in La Union. Before he was appointed as City Mayor, he was Provincial Treasurer of Cebu. He resigned from the position on December 31, 1936.^[6]

Jacinto took his oath of office at Malacañang Palace before Elpidio Quirino, the Secretary of the Interior on January 7, 1937. Along with him, the following city councilors were sworn into office by Secretary Quirino namely, Manuel Roa (the first President of the Municipal Board), Regino Mercado, Felipe Pacaña, Jose Fortich, Diego Canizares, Jose P. Nolasco, Leandro A. Tojong and Dominador J. Abella.^[8]

The next to be appointed was Vicente Rama who served as city mayor from 1938 to 1940. When World War II erupted, Rama sought refuge in Carcar where he was appointed as wartime mayor by the Imperial Japanese Army.

A year before the war, Jose Delgado was appointed as city mayor from 1940 to 1942. Delgado also became governor of Cebu from 1943 to 1944. Next in line was Juan Cerilles Zamora.

Then there was Dr. Leandro Tojong of Ginatilan, Cebu, followed by another doctor, Nicolas Escario of Bantayan, Cebu, followed by lawyer Vicente S. del Rosario, then Dr. Luis Espina, Miguel Raffiñan, Pedro Elizalde, Dr. Jose V. Rodriguez, and Pedro Clavano, all of which were appointed by the president.

Elective position

On June 7, 1955, the Cebu City Charter was amended by Republic Act No. 1233.^[9] The first election for City mayor was held on November 8, 1955 together with the 1955 senatorial elections. The first to be elected as city mayor was Sergio Osmeña Jr. together with his vice mayor Ramon Duterte.^[7]

Osmeña Jr. was elected mayor five times in 1955, 1959, 1963, 1967, and 1971, a feat that would only be surpassed by his son Tomas Osmeña in the late 1980s to 2010s. Osmeña Jr. was severely injured in the Plaza Miranda Bombing on August 21, 1971, heading into exile in the United States and remaining there after the declaration of Martial Law and imposition of dictatorship by his political rival, President Ferdinand Marcos.^[10]

From 1978 to 1988, the office was occupied by several appointed mayors. Marcos appointed Florentino Solon in 1978, who then won a full term in the 1980 elections. Solon resigned in 1983 after Marcos appointed him Deputy Minister of Health, succeeded by Vice Mayor Ronald Duterte who served until President Corazon Aquino forced the removal of all local chief executives and their replacement with officers-in-charge (OICs).

John Henry Osmeña was appointed OIC Mayor on March 25, 1986, before resigning to run for senator in 1987. He was succeeded by appointed OIC Jose V. Cuenco on March 19, 1987 until his resignation to run for a full term as mayor on November 27. Cuenco was followed by Antonio R. Veloso who served until the resumption of elective terms on February 2, 1988, upon the election of Tomas Osmeña as mayor.^[11][12][13]

1988 to present

From the late 1990s onwards, the city was beset by a pattern of conflicts between mayors and their political heirs, with the former criticizing the latter's policies as mayor:

• Then-Mayor Alvin Garcia, successor and former vice mayor to Tomas Osmeña, bolted the latter's party to found Kugi Uswag Sugbo (KUSUG) following a rift that first emerged in 1997.^[14]
• After Tomas Osmeña reached the 3-term limit, he ran for Congress in 2010 and was succeeded by allied Vice Mayor Mike Rama. Conflict eventually emerged between the two over Rama's handling of the city, culminating in Rama leaving BOPK to found his own party, Team Rama in 2013.^[15][16]
• In 2021, Mike Rama, once again vice mayor, criticized ally Mayor Edgardo Labella for the latter's handling of the COVID-19 pandemic, to which Labella responded by accusing Rama of playing politics.^[17] Rama once again assumed the office of mayor following Labella's death from sepsis on November 19, 2021.^[18]
• In 2024, following Rama's suspension from office, he became increasingly critical of the leadership of his ally and vice mayor, Acting Mayor Raymond Garcia. Rama eventually ended the alliance between him and Garcia on September 25.^[19]

In 2024, Rama became the first mayor of Cebu City to be removed by the Ombudsman of the Philippines, being dismissed from office and permanently disqualified from public service on October 3, after being found guilty of nepotism and grave misconduct.^[20][21][22]

Municipality of Cebu

The following served as municipal presidents of Cebu:^[24]

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No.	Image	President (birth–death)	Party[a]		Term	Vice President
1		Florentino Cuico Rallos 1860–1912 (aged 51-52) [25]		Independent Nacionalista after 1907	1901 – 1903	Agapito Hilario
					1903 – 1905	Filemon Yap Sotto Nacionalista
2		Celestino Lasala Rodriguez 1872–1955 (aged 82-83)		Independent Nacionalista (from 1907)	1905 – 1907	Luciano Abellana Bacayo
3		Luciano Abellana Bacayo c. 1873–? [26]			1907 – 1908	Raimundo Bracamonte Enriquez [27]
4		Martin Pantaleon Llorente c.1868–1916 (aged ~49) [28]		Federalista	1908 – 1909	Francisco Arias Nacionalista [25]
5		Melchor Gonzalez c. 1873–1950?			1909 – 1910	Pedro Abarca
6		Vicente L. Teves			1910 – 1913	Gregorio Abendan
7		Arsenio Veloso Climaco 1870–1952 (aged 82)			1913 – 1916	Fructuoso Rodis Ramos Nacionalista
8		Fructuoso Rodis Ramos 1869–1949 (aged 80) [29]		Nacionalista	1916 – 1920	Rufino Lauron
					1920 – 1922	Pedro Abella
9		Hilario Hermosa Abellana 1896–1945 (aged 48)		Democrata	1922 – 1925	Julian Lochallan Alcantara
					1925 – 1928	Alberto Mansueto
					1928 – 1931	Regino Mercado
(8)		Fructuoso Rodis Ramos 1869–1949 (aged 80) [29]		Nacionalista	1931 – 1934	Jose Fortich Democrata [30]
					1934 – 1937	Julian Lochallan Alcantara
						Marcos Miranda Morelos
10		Mariano Jesus Diosomito Cuenco1 1888–1964 (aged 76)		Nacionalista	November 28, 1936 – December 1, 1936[b]	None[b]

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Notes

City of Cebu

This is the list of mayors of Cebu City:^[31]

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No.[a]	Image	Mayor Lifespan	Party[b]		Term	Vice Mayor Party
Appointive position (1936–1955)
1		Alfredo V. Jacinto2 1891–1973		Independent	January 7, 1937 – November 26, 1938	—N/a
2		Vicente Rama 1887–1956 (aged 69)		Nacionalista	November 26, 1938 – August 2, 1940	—N/a
3		Jose Delgado [32]		KALIBAPI	August 3, 1940 – April 10, 1942	—N/a
4		Juan Cerilles Zamora 1906–1966 (aged 59-60) [32]		KALIBAPI	1942 – 1944	—N/a
5		Leandro Aballe Tojong 1905–1980 (aged 75)		Nacionalista	1945 Appointed by Sergio Osmeña – 1945	—N/a
6		Nicolas Gandionco Escario 1898–1958 (aged 59)		Nacionalista	1945 Appointed by Sergio Osmeña – 1946	—N/a
7		Vicente Stuart del Rosario 1905–1987 (aged 81-82) [33]		Liberal	1946 Appointed by Manuel Roxas – 1947	—N/a
8		Luis Veloso Espina [34]		Liberal	May 27, 1947 Appointed by Manuel Roxas – September 5, 1947	—N/a
9		Miguel Garces Raffiñan 1891–?		Liberal	September 6, 1947 Appointed by Manuel Roxas – August 15, 1951		Arsenio R. Villanueva (removed June 9, 1952) [35]
10		Pedro Bernal Elizalde 1890–1981 (aged 90-91) [36]		Liberal	August 18, 1951 Appointed by Elpidio Quirino – July 23, 1952
							Carlos Jurado Cuizon Liberal [37][38]
11		Jose Chiong Veloso Rodriguez 1906–? [39]		Liberal	November 9, 1952 Appointed by Elpidio Quirino – March 26, 1953
(7)		Vicente Stuart del Rosario 1905–1987 (aged 81-82) [33]		Liberal	April 9, 1953 Appointed by Elpidio Quirino – December 6, 1953
(11)		Jose Chiong Veloso Rodriguez 1906–? [39]		Liberal	December 7, 1953 Reinstated by the Supreme Court – November 16, 1955
							Florentino D. Tecson (from January 28, 1954) [40]
12		Pedro B. Clavano 1907–? [41][42]		Nacionalista	November 17, 1955 Appointed by Ramon Magsaysay – December 30, 1955
Elective position (1956–present)
13		Sergio Veloso Osmeña Jr. 1916–1984 (aged 67) [40][43]		Liberal	December 30, 1955 – September 12, 1957 Elected to Congress		Ramon Gonzales Duterte Liberal
14		Ramon Gonzales Duterte 1901–1971 (aged 69) [40]		Liberal	September 12, 1957 – December 30, 1959		Ramon Abasolo Abellanosa [43]
(13)		Sergio Veloso Osmeña Jr. 1916–1984 (aged 67) [40]		Nacionalista	December 30, 1959 – January 1, 1960 Elected to Congress		Carlos Jurado Cuizon Nacionalista [37]
15		Carlos Jurado Cuizon 1909–1989 (aged 79-80) [37]		Nacionalista	January 1, 1960 – September 18, 1963		Mario Diez Ortiz [44]
16		Mario Diez Ortiz 1922–2015 (aged 93) [44]		Nacionalista	September 18, 1963 – December 30, 1963	—N/a
(13)		Sergio Veloso Osmeña Jr. 1916–1984 (aged 67) [40]		Liberal	December 30, 1963 – September 16, 1965 Elected Senator		Carlos Jurado Cuizon Liberal [37]
(15)		Carlos Jurado Cuizon 1909–1989 (aged 79-80) [37]		Liberal	September 16, 1965 – December 30, 1967		Luis Villamor Diores Liberal → Nacionalista [45][46]
(13)		Sergio Veloso Osmeña Jr. 1916–1984 (aged 67)		Liberal	December 30, 1967 – January 3, 1968		Eulogio Enriquez Borres Liberal
17		Eulogio Enriquez Borres 1917–2008 (aged 88-89) [40][47]		Liberal	January 3, 1968 – September 13, 1971 Resigned to run for election		John Henry Renner Osmeña Liberal (until December 30, 1969) [48]
18		Florencio S. Urot 1904–1975 (aged 70-71) [49][50][51]		Liberal	September 13, 1971 – December 31, 1971		Jose Chiong Veloso Rodriguez Liberal [51]
(13)		Sergio Veloso Osmeña Jr. 1916–1984 (aged 67)		Liberal	December 31, 1971 – September 17, 1972 Exiled by the Marcos dictatorship		Eulogio Enriquez Borres Liberal
(17)		Eulogio Enriquez Borres 1917–2008 (aged 88-89) [40][47]		Panaghiusa	September 17, 1972 Succeeded as Mayor – October 16, 1978	—N/a
19		Florentino Sanico Solon 1931–2020 (aged 88) [52][53][54]		KBL	October 16, 1978 Appointed by Marcos – 1983 Appointed Deputy Minister of Health		Eulogio Enriquez Borres (until December 31, 1980) Panaghiusa
							Ronald Regis Duterte (from December 31, 1980) KBL [52][53]
20		Ronald Regis Duterte3 1934–2016 (aged 82) [52][53]		KBL	1983 Succeeded as Mayor – March 25, 1986 Post-EDSA forced resignation[c]		Vicente Alcazaren Kintanar Jr. KBL [53]
21		John Henry Renner Osmeña3 1935–2021 (aged 86) [55]		Liberal	March 25, 1986 Appointed OIC[c] – March 19, 1987 Resigned to run for Senator[d]		Jose Veloso Cuenco Panaghiusa
22		Jose Veloso Cuenco3 [55]		Panaghiusa	March 19, 1987 Appointed OIC[c] – November 27, 1987 Resigned to run for Mayor[d]		Augusto Wong Go Panaghiusa
23		Antonio Rodriguez Veloso3 1930–2026 (aged 96) [56]		Independent	November 27, 1987 Appointed OIC[c] – February 2, 1988 (Presidential Term non-87' Concon)		Joseph Sy Gaisano[c] [57]
24		Tomas dela Rama Osmeña b. (1948-07-26) July 26, 1948 (age 77)		Lakas Local: BOPK	February 2, 1988 (Presidential Term non-87' Concon) – June 30, 1995		Alvin Biaño Garcia Lakas / BOPK
25		Alvin Biaño Garcia b. (1946-06-29) June 29, 1946 (age 79)		PROMDI Local: BOPK	June 30, 1995 – June 30, 2001		Renato Veloso Osmeña Sr. PROMDI → KAMPI BOPK → KUSUG
				KAMPI Local: KUSUG
(24)		Tomas dela Rama Osmeña b. (1948-07-26) July 26, 1948 (age 77)		PROMDI (2001–2004) Lakas (2004–2009) Liberal (2009–2010) Local: BOPK	June 30, 2001 – June 30, 2010		Michael Lopez Rama PROMDI → Lakas → Liberal BOPK
26		Michael Lopez Rama b. (1954-10-28) October 28, 1954 (age 71)		Liberal Local: BOPK	June 30, 2010 – June 30, 2013		Joy Augustus Go Young Liberal / BOPK
				UNA Local: Team Rama	June 30, 2013 – December 11, 2015 Suspended[e]		Edgardo Colina Labella UNA / BARUG [58]
—	[e]	Edgardo Colina Labella[e] Acting 1951–2021 (aged 70) [59]		UNA Local: BARUG	December 11, 2015 – February 8, 2016		Nestor Dionson Archival Sr.[e] Acting Liberal / BOPK
(26)		Michael Lopez Rama b. (1954-10-28) October 28, 1954 (age 71) [58][60]		UNA Local: BARUG	February 8, 2016 – May 17, 2016 Suspended[f]		Edgardo Colina Labella UNA / BARUG
—		Margarita Vargas Osmeña[f] Acting b. (1949-07-25) July 25, 1949 (age 76) [61][62]		Liberal Local: BOPK	May 17, 2016 – June 30, 2016		Lea Ouano Japson[f] Acting Liberal / BOPK
(24)		Tomas dela Rama Osmeña b. (1948-07-26) July 26, 1948 (age 77) [63][64]		Liberal (2016–2018) LDP (2018–2019) Local: BOPK	June 30, 2016 – June 30, 2019		Edgardo Colina Labella UNA → PDP-Laban BARUG
27		Edgardo Colina Labella✝ 1951–2021 (aged 70) [58][65]		PDP-Laban Local: BARUG	June 30, 2019 – November 19, 2021 Died in office[g]		Michael Lopez Rama PDP-Laban / BARUG
(26)		Michael Lopez Rama b. (1954-10-28) October 28, 1954 (age 71) [66]		PDP-Laban Local: BARUG	November 20, 2021 Succeeded as Mayor[g] – June 30, 2022		Donaldo Cabañes Hontiveros PDP-Laban / BARUG
					June 30, 2022 – October 3, 2024 Dismissed from office[h]		Raymond Alvin Neri Garcia PDP-Laban / KUSUG
—		Raymond Alvin Neri Garcia b. (1977-01-29) January 29, 1977 (age 49) [66][67]		PDP-Laban (2022–2024) PFP (2024–2025) Local: KUSUG	May 8, 2024 Acting[h] – October 3, 2024		Donaldo Cabañes Hontiveros PDP-Laban / BARUG
28					October 3, 2024 Succeeded as Mayor – June 30, 2025
29		Nestor Dionson Archival b. (1958-06-02) June 2, 1958 (age 67) [68][69]		Liberal Local: BOPK	June 30, 2025 – Incumbent		Tomas dela Rama Osmeña Liberal / BOPK

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Notes

Designations

¹ Inaugural Municipal mayor.

² Inaugural City mayor.

³ Officer-in-charge (OIC).

^✝ Died in office.

Timeline of elected city mayors (1986 to present)

By national party

By local political bloc^[a]

Current Vice Mayor

The incumbent vice mayor is Tomas "Tommy" R. Osmeña, the founder of BOPK and himself a former mayor from 1988 to 1995, 2001 to 2010, and 2016 to 2019. Osmeña was elected as Archival's running mate in the 2025 elections, defeating incumbent vice mayor Hontiveros (BARUG) and former city councilor and MCWD chairman Jose "Joey" Daluz III (KUSUG-Panaghiusa).^[4][68]

Osmeña, alongside Archival, took his ceremonial oath of office on June 26, 2025 and formally began his term as vice mayor on June 30.^[5]