| Vicente J. Francisco | |
| Office: | Senator of the Philippines |
| Party: | Liberal (1946–1974) |
| Term Start: | May 25, 1946 |
| Term End: | December 30, 1951 |
| Office2: | Majority Floor Leader of the Senate of the Philippines |
| Term Start2: | May 25, 1946 |
| Term End2: | February 21, 1949 |
| Predecessor2: | Melecio Arranz |
| Successor2: | Tomas Cabili |
| Birth Date: | 19 July 1891 |
| Birth Place: | Cavite Puerto, Cavite, Captaincy General of the Philippines |
Vicente J. Francisco y Santos (July 19, 1891 – July 19, 1974[1]) was a Filipino jurist and politician. Francisco was known as one of the best Filipino lawyers of his time. He was one of the members of the 1934 Constitutional Convention and served as a member of the Senate of the Philippines from 1946 to 1949.
Francisco was born on July 19, 1891 to Bibiano Francisco and Josefa Santos in Cavite, Cavite.[2] He studied at Escuela de Derecho de Manila where he obtained his Bachelor of Laws in 1914. He then went to New York, United States and enrolled at Columbia University to study mercantile law. As a lawyer, he worked as the dean of the college of law at the University of Manila and was president of the Lawyer's League of the Philippines.[3]
He was elected as a delegate from Cavite in the 1934 Philippine Constitutional Convention election. Aside from politics, Francisco also owned and became president of the East Publishing Company, Inc. He was a known prolific writer and have his own law books published.
In 1946, Francisco was elected to the Senate of the Philippines[4] as a candidate of the Liberal Party, winning the largest number of votes. After his election, he was elected Majority Leader by his colleagues. In the Senate, he was responsible for many bills, including Act 52, which re-established the Court of Appeals. In the 1949 elections, Francisco ran for Vice President of the Philippines as Senate President Jose Avelino's running mate but lost to Fernando Lopez with 1.73% of the vote.
Francisco died in 1974 on his 83rd birthday. He was married to Maria Jalbuena. Their son Ricardo Francisco served as a justice of the Supreme Court of the Philippines from 1995 to 1998.[5]