2025 Marinduque local elections
Local elections were held in Marinduque on May 12, 2025, as part of the 2025 Philippine general election. Voters selected candidates for all local positions: a town mayor, vice mayor and town councilors, as well as members of the Sangguniang Panlalawigan, a vice-governor, a governor and a representative for the province's at-large congressional district in the House of Representatives.
The election resulted in a significant political realignment in Marinduque, with the incumbent members of the Velasco family, the province's ruling political dynasty, being defeated by opposition politicians.
Background
The regional office of the Commission on Elections, based in Calapan in neighboring Oriental Mindoro, confirmed that 165,729 voters were registered to vote in Marinduque for this election, up from the 159,000 who were registered in the previous election. The COMELEC also confirmed that all posts in the province would be contested by at least two candidates, the first time this has happened since the 2016 elections.On November 6, 2024, the COMELEC released its final certified list of candidates running for provincial office, with 20 candidates vying for 13 posts.
Although the provincial elections were contested by multiple candidates, Rappler had concluded that the races for governor and congressman were not expected to be competitive as the incumbent candidates were expected to win handily.
Provincial elections
Governor
Incumbent governor Presbitero Velasco Jr. ran for congressman despite being eligible to run for a third term, swapping with his son Lord Allan Velasco who ran instead for governor. Unlike in the 2022 election where he ran for congressman under PDP–Laban, he ran in this election under the Nationalist People's Coalition. His opponent was Melecio Go, who last ran for governor in the 2016 election under the Nacionalista Party and had since run in this election as the PDP candidate.Although the COMELEC initially accepted the nomination of Manuel Rejano, who was running as an independent, his candidacy was ultimately rejected with the release of the final list of candidates.
Vice Governor
Adeline Angeles, the incumbent vice governor, ran for re-election as the running mate of Lord Allan Velasco, although she ran under the Partido Federal ng Pilipinas, the same party as that of the elder Velasco. Her opponent was her immediate predecessor, Romulo Bacorro Jr., who ran for governor in the previous election under Aksyon but was now running in this election as an independent with Melecio Go as his running mate.Provincial Board
In the final list of candidates running for provincial-level positions released by the COMELEC, 14 candidates were announced as running for seats in the Provincial Board, with seven candidates running in each district.In 2024, Marinduque was one of 22 provinces whose income classification was upgraded by the Department of Finance. As a result, the COMELEC subsequently announced that the province's two board districts were to elect elect five members each to the Provincial Board starting with this election, as opposed to four per district as was the case in previous elections.
1st District
Municipality: Boac, Mogpog, Gasan2nd District
Municipality: Santa Cruz, Torrijos, BuenavistaCongressional election
Incumbent congressman Lord Allan Velasco ran for governor after serving three terms in Congress, swapping with his father Presbitero Velasco Jr. who ran for congressman. Unlike in the 2022 election where he ran for governor under PDP–Laban, he was running in this election under the PFP. Velasco filed his certificate of candidacy on October 7, 2024.Velasco's opponent was Reynaldo Salvacion, who ran for vice governor in the 2022 election as the candidate of the Alliance for Barangay Concerns and had decided to run in this election as an independent.
Municipal elections
Parties are as stated in their certificates of candidacy.Boac
In Boac, the provincial capital, the municipal election was contested primarily between candidates from the Partido Federal ng Pilipinas and several independents, with Rappler citing the Boac mayoral election as being the most competitive race in the province.Mayor
Incumbent Armi Carrion, the widow of former governor Jose Antonio Carrion, ran for re-election to her third and final term. Unlike in the 2022 election where she ran under PDP–Laban, she was running in this election as a candidate of the PFP. Her opponents in the election were James Dellosa, an engineer who ran against Carrion in the 2022 election under the PFP and who was now running as an independent, and Dindo Hidalgo, a lawyer who also ran as an independent.Opinion polling
Vice Mayor
Incumbent Mark Anthony Seño ran for re-election. Similar to his running mate Carrion, he ran as a candidate of the PFP after running as the candidate of PDP–Laban in the 2022 election. His opponent was municipal councilor Theresa Caballes, running as an independent together with Dellosa.Opinion polling
Mogpog
In Mogpog, the municipal election was contested primarily between candidates from the PFP and several independent candidates.Mayor
Incumbent Augusto Leo Livelo ran for vice mayor after serving three terms as mayor. His brother, former mayor Senen Livelo Jr., ran in his stead. His opponents in the election were Marina Luna, running as an independent, and Vincent Michael Velasco, brother of Lord Allan Velasco.Vice Mayor
Incumbent Jonathan Garcia ran for re-election. Unlike in the 2022 election where he ran under PDP–Laban, he was running in this election as a candidate of the PFP. His opponent was the incumbent mayor, Augusto Leo Livelo.Opinion polling
Gasan
In Gasan, the municipal election was contested primarily between candidates from the PFP and the Alliance for Barangay Concerns.Mayor
Incumbent Rolando O. Tolentino ran for re-election. Unlike in the 2022 election, where he ran under PDP–Laban, he was running in this election as a candidate of the PFP. His opponents in the election were Fortunato Hilvano Jr., running as an independent, and James Marty Lim, barangay captain of Barangay Dos and national chairman emeritus of the League of Barangays in the Philippines who also ran for governor in the 2022 election under the ABC.Opinion polling
Vice Mayor
Incumbent Lidany Baldo ran for re-election as the running mate of James Marty Lim. Her opponent was municipal councilor Joy Raymond Isidro, running under the PFP as Tolentino's running mate.Opinion polling
Santa Cruz
In Santa Cruz, the municipal election was contested primarily between candidates from the NPC and the PFP.Mayor
Incumbent Marisa Red-Martinez ran for re-election. Unlike in the 2022 election, where she ran under the NPC, she was running in this election as a candidate of the PFP. Her opponent was her immediate predecessor, Antonio Uy Jr., who was now running as the NPC candidate after running in the previous election as a candidate of the People's Reform Party.Opinion polling
Vice Mayor
Incumbent Medwin "Bobs" Manuel ran for re-election. His opponent was Isaganie "Agimat" Revilla, running under the PFP.Opinion polling
Torrijos
In Torrijos, the municipal election was contested primarily between candidates from the PFP and the ABC.Mayor
Incumbent Lorna Velasco, the wife of Presbitero Velasco Jr., was term-limited and did not seek any other office. Although three candidates filed certificates of candidacy to run for mayor in this election, the COMELEC ultimately certified only two candidates: Christopher "Toper" Laus, who ran under the PFP, and Joey Peñaflor, who ran against Velasco for mayor in the 2022 election under Aksyon and was now running under the ABC.Opinion polling
Vice Mayor
Incumbent Ricardo de Galicia was also term-limited and did not seek any other office. Two municipal councilors sought the position: Joel Cruzado, who ran under the PFP, and Edmar Frias, who ran under the ABC.Opinion polling
Buenavista
In Buenavista, the municipal election was contested primarily between candidates from the PFP and several independent candidates.Mayor
Incumbent Eduard Siena ran for re-election. Unlike in the 2022 election, where he ran under Aksyon, he was running in this election as an independent. His opponent was his immediate predecessor, Nancy Madrigal, who ran as the PFP candidate.Opinion polling
Vice Mayor
Incumbent David Vitto ran for re-election. His opponent was municipal councilor Herminigildo Malapote Jr., who ran as the PFP candidate.Opinion polling
Aftermath
Go, Bacorro and Salvacion were officially proclaimed by the COMELEC as governor, vice governor and congressman-elect the day after the election, calling the election based on 98.58% of the received election returns. Lord Allan Velasco officially conceded shortly thereafter on Facebook, thanking his supporters for their trust in him throughout the campaign.The election marked a stunning reversal of fortunes for the Velasco family, whose members first began pursuing elected public office in 2010 and which culminated in their domination of the province's politics after the 2019 elections, dislodging the family of Carmencita Reyes which until then had been the province's dominant political dynasty. While the governor's race was decided by a very small margin, the decisive victory of the other opposition candidates suggests that the attempt of the incumbent Velascos to switch positions was a mistake, and has also been interpreted as being reflective of Marinduque voters wanting to move away from entrenched political dynasties in favor of a more independent provincial leadership, as well as better governance.
Public reaction to the election results was positive, with the defeat of the Velascos being seen as heralding a new era for Marinduque politics. The Daily Tribune published a short editorial on Facebook calling it the "end of a dynasty", "overdue" and a "correction" by Marinduque voters, and Rappler attributed the results to Marinduque voters' protest of political dynasties.
In the context of the 2025 elections Marinduque was seen as an outlier in Mimaropa, the region where it is located, as political dynasties in the rest of the region continued to remain dominant in their respective provinces, but even well-entrenched dynasties have also lost in other provinces in the Philippines more broadly, suggesting that their grip on power may not be as strong as people believe it to be.