Rodolfo B. Albano

Rodolfo Bagunu Albano Jr. (March 27, 1934 – November 5, 2019) was a Filipino lawyer and politician. He served as House majority leader from 1995 to 1998 and as House minority leader from 1987 to 1989. Referred to as "Lakay Rudy" by his constituents, he represented Isabela's first district in the House of Representatives in the 8th to 10th, 12th, and 15th Congresses, and the province's lone district during the 7th Congress. He represented the LPGMA Partylist from June 2019 until his death in office in November of the same year. He was also a member of the Batasang Pambansa from 1978 to 1986.

Albano served as chairperson of the Energy Regulatory Commission from 2004 to 2008 under the presidency of Gloria Macapagal Arroyo.

Early life and education Albano was born on March 27, 1934 in Cabagan, Isabela to former representative Rodolfo Delfin Albano and Alfreda Bagunu, the scion of a landowning family. His paternal grandfather, Francisco Albano, was a carabao trader who immigrated to Cabagan from Bacarra, Ilocos Norte.

He obtained his Bachelor of Laws degree at the Manuel L. Quezon University, and was admitted to the Philippine Bar in 1957.

House of Representatives (1969–1973) Albano ran for Isabela's lone district, his father's former congressional seat, in 1969 and was elected to serve in the 7th Congress, holding office until the imposition of martial law.

Presiding Judge of 16th Circuit Criminal Court (1975–1978) In 1975, Albano was appointed by President Ferdinand Marcos as presiding judge of the 16th Circuit Criminal Court in Davao City.

Batasang Pambansa (1978–1986) In 1978, Albano ran under the Kilusang Bagong Lipunan (KBL) ticket for one of the three contested seats for Region II in the Interim Batasang Pambansa. He placed second and served until 1984, when he was elected to the Regular Batasang Pambansa as an at-large representative for Isabela. He served until 1986, when the parliament was abolished following the People Power Revolution.

House of Representatives (1987–1998; 2001–2004)

Albano ran for the newly-created first district of Isabela in the 1987 House elections and won as a member of the KBL. He was designated minority floor leader after losing the speakership to Ramon Mitra Jr. On October 20, 1989, he resigned as minority leader to give way to Mohammad Ali Dimaporo, following an agreement within the minority bloc to rotate the position. He later joined the majority bloc under speaker Jose de Venecia Jr. in 1995 and was elected majority leader and chairperson of the House Committee on Rules. Albano served a total of three terms until 1998. During this time, Albano supported efforts in Congress to allow for the return of the remains of deposed President Ferdinand Marcos.

House of Representatives (2010–2013) Albano ran for a fifth term in Isabela's first district and was elected as its representative in the 15th Congress.

Mayor of Cabagan (2013–2016) He ran for mayor of his hometown of Cabagan in 2013 and won.

House of Representatives (2019) Albano was the first nominee of the LPGMA Partylist in the 2019 House elections. The party-list placed 47th in the election and won one seat. He died in office on November 5, 2019, following a heart attack. He was later honored by the House of Representatives as one of its longest-serving members.

Personal life and death Albano was married to Josefina Sia Taguinod, a former school teacher, with whom he had six children: Rodolfo III, Maria Sol, Emmanuel, Mila, Antonio, and Lourdes Martina. Josefina died in 1998.

Albano died from heart failure on November 5, 2019.

Electoral history + Electoral history of Rodolfo Albano Jr. Year Office Party Votes received Result Total % . Swing 1960 Vice Governor of Isabela Nacionalista 1st 1969 Representative (Isabela at-large) 1st 1978 Assemblyman (Region II) KBL 776,519 12.32% 2nd 1984 Assemblyman (Isabela at-large) 307,052 1st 1987 Representative (Isabela–1st) 1st 1992 NPC 62,462 92.40% 1st 1995 Lakas 54,692 74.76% 1st -17.64 2001 1st 2010 103,938 74.92% 1st 2013 Mayor of Cabagan NPC 17,177 1st 2019 Representative (Party-list) LPGMA 208,219 0.75% 47th