1971 Makati local elections

1971 Makati mayoral election
November 8, 1971
Mayor before election; Cesar Alzona; Liberal	Elected mayor ; Nemesio Yabut; Liberal
	Vice mayoral election
Vice Mayor before election; Teotimo Gealogo; Liberal	Elected Vice Mayor ; Johnny Wilson; Liberal

Local elections was held in the Municipality of Makati on November 8, 1971, within the 1971 Philippine local elections, during the administration of President Ferdinand Marcos. The voters elected for the elective local posts in the town: the mayor, vice mayor, and the eight-member local municipal council. This was the last election before the imposition of Martial Law in 1972. The municipality of Makati was then under the jurisdiction of the 1st congressional district of the Province of Rizal. The elections for the district representatives were held in 1969.

Background

Incumbent Makati mayor Cesar Alzona, became acting mayor in October 1971 upon the resignation of then acting mayor Jose Luciano, who decided to run for reelection. Alzona decided to run as municipal councilor under the Liberal Party instead.

Nacionalista Party's candidate, Jose Luciano was the municipal mayor of Makati, from 1969 to October 1971, succeeding mayor Maximo Estrella, who was suspended following a corruption conviction involving overpriced traffic deflector mirrors. Luciano assumed the mayoralty in 1969 as the top-voted councilor in the 1967 elections, stepping up because Vice Mayor Teotimo Gealogo was also suspended.^[1]^[2] He later resigned in October 1971 to run for reelection as municipal mayor.

His challenger for mayor was businessman Nemesio Yabut of the Liberal Party. At the time, Philippine politics was under the two-party system, dominated by the Liberals and Nacionalistas.

Candidates

Nacionalista Party

Nacionalista Party
Name	Party

For Mayor
Jose C. Luciano		Nacionalista
For Vice Mayor
Jose Alarilla		Nacionalista
For Councilor
Tomas A. Baluyut		Nacionalista
Benjamin Bautista		Nacionalista
Roberto "Bobby" G. Brillante Sr.		Nacionalista
Oscar Calvento		Nacionalista
Amado de Vera Jr.		Nacionalista
Michael M. Joseph		Nacionalista
Dolores M. Rivera		Nacionalista
Filomena Villamor		Nacionalista

Liberal Party

Liberal Party (Philippines)
Name	Party

For Mayor
Nemesio "Mesio" I. Yabut Sr.		Liberal
For Vice Mayor
Johnny S. Wilson		Liberal
For Councilor
Cesar C. Alzona		Liberal
Ignacio C. Babasa		Liberal
Alberto Estrella		Liberal
Teotimo Gealogo		Liberal
Pedro P. Ison		Liberal
Elena B. Maccay		Liberal
Bernardo P. Nonato		Liberal
Justino Ventura		Liberal

Independent

Independent
Name	Party

For Mayor
Ruperto C. Gaite		Independent
For Councilor
Rafael C. Gaite		Independent
Augusto V. Pangan Sr.		Independent
Joseph Leroy R. Salvador		Independent

Results

Mayor

Nemesio Yabut defeated incumbent mayor Jose C. Luciano.

1971 Makati mayoral election^[3]
Candidate		Party	Votes	%
	Nemesio "Mesio" I. Yabut Sr.	Liberal Party	25,843	46.79
	Jose C. Luciano	Nacionalista Party	18,917	34.25
	Ruperto C. Gaite	Independent	10,477	18.97
Total			55,237	100.00

	Liberal hold
Source: Philippine Commission on Elections

Vice Mayor

Actor Johnny Wilson won against Jose Alarilla.

1971 Makati vice mayoral election
Candidate		Party	Votes	%
	Johnny S. Wilson	Liberal Party	31,684	57.36
	Jose Alarilla	Nacionalista Party	23,553	42.64
Total			55,237	100.00

	Liberal hold
Source: Philippine Commission on Elections

Rizal 1st District Representative

Neptali Gonzales won as 1st congressional district representative against 12 other contenders, among them former representative Rufino Antonio. The election for this position was held on November 11, 1969. This district holds jurisdiction over the Municipality of Makati.

1969 Rizal's 1st congressional district representative election
Candidate		Party	Votes	%
	Neptali Gonzales	Liberal Party	134,789	34.71
	Felipe Ysmael Jr.	Independent	116,431	29.99
	Nemesio Yabut	Nacionalista Party	104,486	26.91
	Rufino D. Antonio	Independent	26,567	6.84
	Antonio R. Quirino	Liberal Party Independent	3,817	0.98
	Virgilio M. Ferrer	Independent	821	0.21
	Filemon G. Alvarez	Independent	574	0.15
	Wilfredo S. Torres	Liberal Party Independent	566	0.15
	Isabelo P. Lim	Nacionalista Party Independent	200	0.05
	Jaime F. de la Rosa Jr.	Liberal Party (Philippines)	21	0.01
	Avelino L. Albert	Nacionalista Party	13	0.00
	Jose V. Camu	Independent	2	0.00
Total			388,287	100.00

	Liberal gain from Independent
Source: Philippine Commission on Elections

Municipal Council

Three out of eight winning candidates came from the Liberal Party, three from the Nacionalista Party, while two were Independents (actors Chiquito and Leroy Salvador).

Municipal Council election at Makati's lone district
	Candidate	Votes
Liberal	Cesar C. Alzona	31,847
Independent	Augusto "Chiquito" V. Pangan Sr.	28,936
Nacionalista	Michael M. Joseph	26,583
Liberal	Alberto Estrella	24,761
Independent	Joseph Leroy R. Salvador	22,418
Liberal	Elena B. Maccay	20,937
Nacionalista	Dolores M. Rivera	19,264
Nacionalista	Tomas A. Baluyut	17,836

Liberal	Justino Ventura	11,683
Nacionalista	Oscar Calvento	10,927
Independent	Rafael C. Gaite	9,846
Liberal	Pedro P. Ison	9,317
Nacionalista	Roberto "Bobby" G. Brillante Sr	8,592
Liberal	Teotimo Gealogo	7,781
Nacionalista	Amado C. de Vera Jr	7,263
Liberal	Bernardo P. Nonato	6,674
Nacionalista	Benjamin Bautista	6,183
Liberal	Juan E. Tengco	5,729
Nacionalista	Filomena Villamor	4,981

References

↑ G.R. No. L-30306 (June 20, 1969), Luciano vs. Provincial Governor of Rizal, retrieved July 17, 2026
↑ G.R. No. L-31622 (August 31, 1970), Luciano vs. Estrella, retrieved July 17, 2026
↑ "Two Daley-like mayors 'hold the fort' in Manila". The Christian Science Monitor. June 11, 1984. Retrieved July 8, 2026.

[1] G.R. No. L-30306 (June 20, 1969), Luciano vs. Provincial Governor of Rizal, retrieved July 17, 2026

[2] G.R. No. L-31622 (August 31, 1970), Luciano vs. Estrella, retrieved July 17, 2026

[3] "Two Daley-like mayors 'hold the fort' in Manila". The Christian Science Monitor. June 11, 1984. Retrieved July 8, 2026.

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