Women dominate P’sinan town’s mayoral polls for 4 decades

NATIVIDAD, Pangasinan – This one is for the books on Philippine politics: Since a woman was first elected mayor in this town four decades ago, the "fairer sex" has never relinquished the municipal government’s top elective post.

And in the May 14 elections, a woman is gearing up to continue the record. Re-electionist mayor Alejandrea Nadonza-Supnet is eyeing a third and last term as the standard bearer of the Nationalist People’s Coalition (NPC). Her challenger: Cocoy Rafael of the Liberal Party.

NPC’s vice mayoralty bet is Supnet’s party mate, re-electionist Manolito Noveda. Rafael’s running mate is councilor Benjamin Zaragoza Jr.

Supnet, a former teacher at the Natividad Oriental Academy (NOA), this town’s oldest high school, was first elected mayor of this easternmost Pangasinan town in 2001, and was re-elected in 2004. She was vice mayor before becoming the town’s top executive.

Supnet succeeded another woman, Rowena Zaragoza-Bernabe, who served as mayor for three terms (1992-2001).

Bernabe is a daughter of the late mayor Guerrero Zaragoza of neighboring Tayug town, who was killed by still unknown gunmen in a cockpit in that town in 2003.

When her third term was up, she supported the candidacy of her younger sister, Janette Zaragoza, for the Natividad mayoral post. Zaragoza, however, lost to Supnet.

Bernabe’s three terms were preceded by that of Susana Rillorta-Ancheta, a former elementary school official. Ancheta, who died in a road accident in the United States a few years back, was mayor for one term –1988 to 1991.

The longest-serving mayor of Natividad was Bonifacia Calica-Arciaga, who headed the municipal government from 1968 to 1986.

Arciaga, then a high school teacher at NOA, won in the 1967 elections and was re-elected in 1971. Her term subsequently lasted through the Martial Law years.

After the EDSA I revolt that toppled President Ferdinand Marcos, three men served as acting mayor (by presidential appointment) one after the other.

The first was Arturo Manaois Jr., who served from April 1 to Oct. 31, 1986. He was followed by Domingo Braganza, Nov. 1, 1986 to Dec. 31, 1987; and Guillermo Barcena, Jan. 1 to April 30, 1988.

In the 1988 local elections, Ancheta won the mayoralty race.

Natividad became a town following the enactment of Act 371 of the Philippine Commission on March 7, 1902.

It was carved out of the barangays of three adjacent towns – San Nicolas in the north, Tayug in the west, and San Quintin in the south. To the east is the Caraballo mountain.

Since the first elections in Natividad on April 16, 1922, 25 men and women have served as the town’s top executive (called municipal president until 1941, and municipal mayor thereafter).

The town’s first 18 top executives were males but since Arciaga became mayor in 1967, no male has been elected to the position.