Negros Occidental's at-large congressional district explained

Negros Occidental's at-large congressional district refers to the provincewide electoral district that was used to elect members of Philippine national legislatures in Negros Occidental before 1987.^[1]

Negros Occidental first elected its representatives at-large in the 1943 Philippine legislative election for a seat in the National Assembly of the Second Philippine Republic, with a separate district created for Bacolod being a chartered city since 1938.^{[2] [3]} Before 1943, the province including its capital city was represented in the national legislatures through its first, second and third districts.^[1] The province was also earlier represented in the Malolos Congress of the First Philippine Republic in 1898 by appointed delegates residing in Luzon.^[4]

The three districts were restored in Negros Occidental ahead of the 1941 Philippine House of Representatives elections whose elected representatives only began to serve following the dissolution of the Second Republic and the restoration of the Philippine Commonwealth in 1945. An at-large district would not be used in the province again until the 1984 Philippine parliamentary election for seven seats in the Batasang Pambansa which it shared with its highly-urbanized capital city. It became obsolete following the 1987 reapportionment under a new constitution that divided Negros Occidental into six congressional districts and re-established Bacolod's at-large district.^{[1] [5]}

Representation history

	Term of office		National Assembly		Seat A					Seat B					Seat C
	Start	End			Member		Party	Electoral history		Member		Party	Electoral history		Member		Party	Electoral history
Negros Occidental's at-large district for the Malolos Congress
District created June 18, 1898.^[6]
–	September 15, 1898	March 23, 1901	1st			Juan Benson	Independent	Appointed.			Antonio Montenegro	Independent	Appointed.			José M. de la Viña	Independent	Appointed.
	Term of office		National Assembly		Seat A					Seat B				Seats eliminated
	Start	End			Member		Party	Electoral history		Member		Party	Electoral history
Negros Occidental's at-large district for the National Assembly (Second Philippine Republic)
District re-created September 7, 1943.
–	September 25, 1943	February 2, 1944	1st			Gil Montilla	KALIBAPI	Elected in 1943.			Vicente F. Castillo	KALIBAPI	Appointed as an ex officio member.
District dissolved into Negros Occidental's 1st, 2nd and 3rd districts.
	Term of office		Batasang Pambansa		Seat A					Seat B					Seat C					Seat D					Seat E					Seat F					Seat G
	Start	End			Member		Party	Electoral history		Member		Party	Electoral history		Member		Party	Electoral history		Member		Party	Electoral history		Member		Party	Electoral history		Member		Party	Electoral history		Member		Party	Electoral history
Negros Occidental's at-large district for the Regular Batasang Pambansa
District re-created February 1, 1984.^[7]
–	July 23, 1984	March 25, 1986	2nd			Wilson P. Gamboa	UNIDO	Elected in 1984.			Antonio M. Gatuslao	Independent	Elected in 1984.			Roberto A. Gatuslao	KBL	Elected in 1984.			Jaime G. Golez	KBL	Elected in 1984.			Antonio G. Marañon Jr.	KBL	Elected in 1984.			Roberto L. Montelibano	KBL	Elected in 1984.			Jose Y. Varela Jr.	KBL	Elected in 1984.
District dissolved into Negros Occidental's 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th and Bacolod's at-large districts.

See also

• Legislative districts of Negros Occidental

Notes and References

1. Web site: Roster of Philippine legislators . . March 15, 2021.
2. Web site: The 1943 Constitution . . March 15, 2021.
3. Web site: Commonwealth Act No. 326 . 18 June 1938 . . March 15, 2021.
4. Web site: The Malolos Congress: A Centennial publication on the inauguration of the Philippine Republic (January 23, 1899 - January 3, 1999) . . 1999 . March 15, 2021.
5. Web site: The 1987 Constitution of the Republic of the Philippines . Chan Robles Virtual Law Library . March 15, 2021.
6. Web site: Decree of June 18, 1898, establishing the Dictatorial Government . . March 15, 2021.
7. Web site: Proclamation No. 2332, s. 1984 . February 1984 . . March 15, 2021.