{{Short description|Filipino politician (born 1934)}} {{For|his son, also a politician|Benhur Abalos}} {{Philippine name|Santos|Abalos}} {{BLP sources|date=June 2013}} {{Infobox officeholder | name = Benjamin Abalos Sr. | image = Benjamin Abalos Sr. (City Mayor, Mandaluyong).jpg | caption = Abalos, portrait | order4 = | office4 = Chairman of the Commission on Elections | term_start4 = June 5, 2002 | term_end4 = October 1, 2007 | predecessor4 = Alfredo Benipayo | successor4 = Resurreccion Borra | appointer4 = Gloria Macapagal Arroyo | order5 = | office5 = Chairman of the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority | president5 = Gloria Macapagal Arroyo | term_start5 = January 20, 2001 | term_end5 = June 5, 2002 | predecessor5 = Jejomar Binay | successor5 = Bayani Fernando | office = Mayor of Mandaluyong | term_start = June 30, 2022 | term_end = June 30, 2025 | predecessor = Carmelita Abalos | successor = Carmelita Abalos | 1blankname = {{nowrap|Vice Mayor}} | 1namedata = Carmelita Abalos | term_start2 = February 2, 1988 | term_end2 = June 30, 1998 | predecessor2 = Roman delos Reyes <small>({{OIC-Philippines}})</small> | successor2 = Benjamin Abalos Jr. | term_start3 = February 25, 1986 | term_end3 = December 1, 1987<br /><small>''Officer In Charge''</small> | appointer3 = Corazon Aquino | predecessor3 = Ernesto Domingo | successor3 = Roman delos Reyes <small>({{OIC-Philippines}})</small> | birth_name = Benjamin Santos Abalos | birth_date = {{birth date and age|1934|09|21}} | death_date = | death_place = | party = Federal (2023–present) | other_party = PDP–Laban (2017–2023)<br />Lakas (1991–2017)<br />LDP (1988–1991) | spouse = {{marriage|Corazon de Castro|1960|2021|end=her death}} | relations = | children = 5 (including Benhur) | education = Ateneo de Manila University<br />(A.B.)<br />Manuel L. Quezon University (LL.B) | occupation = Judge | profession = Lawyer | signature = | website = | footnotes = }} '''Benjamin Santos Abalos Sr.''' (born September 21, 1934) is a Filipino politician who last served as the mayor of Mandaluyong, Metro Manila from 2022 to 2025, a position he also held from 1986 to 1987 and from 1988 to 1998. He also served as a chairman of the Commission on Elections and chairman of the MMDA. As a private citizen, he also serves as the president of the Wack Wack Golf and Country Club and president of the Golfers Association of the Philippines.<ref name="bsa" /> He is the father of former Mandaluyong mayor and Interior and Local Government Secretary Benhur Abalos. His paternal grandson is politician, Jonathan Clement Abalos.
==Early life and education== Abalos was born into a poor family in Pangasinan on September 21, 1934. His parents are Ciriaco Abalos and Eufrocinia Santos. He studied economics at Ateneo de Manila University and graduated from the Manuel L. Quezon University in 1957. Abalos supported himself through college by taking several jobs, working as a janitor, messenger, factory worker, and a caddy at the Wack Wack Golf and Country Club.<ref name="bsa">{{cite web|url=https://mandaluyong.gov.ph/benjamin-santos-abalos-sr/|title=Benjamin Santos Abalos Sr.|website=City of Mandaluyong|accessdate=September 22, 2024}}</ref>
==Public Service career== ===Legal career=== [[File:Benjamin Abalos-2-.jpg|thumb|left|Abalos as COMELEC Chairman under Pres. Gloria Arroyo]] Abalos was admitted to the roll of attorneys of the Supreme Court in 1958 and then into the Integrated Bar of the Philippines in 1973. He began his career as a fiscal before being appointed as a judge and later elected as President of the Judges Association of the Philippines.<ref name="bsa" /> He then served as a Trial Court Judge, earning recognition as the Outstanding Judge of the Philippines for ten consecutive years.<ref name="ben">{{cite web|url=https://mandaluyong.gov.ph/team/benjamin-ben-s-abalos/|title=BENJAMIN "BEN" S. ABALOS|website=City of Mandaluyong|accessdate=September 22, 2024}}</ref>
===Political career=== In 1963, Abalos ran for vice mayor of Mandaluyong, which was then a municipality of Rizal, and lost to Nacionalista candidate Renato Lopez, the son of the late mayor Isaac Lopez.<ref>{{cite news|title=Ibuna victory protested|work=The Manila Times|publisher=The Manila Times Publishing Company, Inc.|date=November 16, 1963|location=Mandaluyong|page=2-A|quote=Mayor elect [Felimon P.] Javier won by 1,380 votes over to his nearest rival Anastacio Martinez. NP Vice Mayor-elect [Renato] Lopez won by 427 votes over Ben Abalos.}}</ref>
He ran for Mandaluyong mayor in 1980, losing to the candidate of former President Ferdinand Marcos. In 1986, shortly after Marcos was ousted through a popular uprising, President Corazon Aquino appointed him as Officer-in-Charge (OIC) of the then municipality of Mandaluyong.
As OIC of the town, he ran for the post of mayor and won in the local elections of 1988, the first local elections under the 1987 Constitution. He was re-elected two times in the elections of 1992 and 1995, making him one of the two Aquino OIC appointees who survived and secured the constitution-mandated three consecutive terms limit for local officials. Abalos made Mandaluyong's cityhood in 1994, also witnessing economic growth brought about by the establishment of new shopping malls and Marketplace, the country's first build-operate-and-transfer and build-transfer (BOT-BT) project. He also initiated Land for the Landless and Home for the Homeless Program housing projects, Metro Manila's first Office for Disabled People, and Mandaluyong Collegiate Scholarship in 1996, as well as seeing the construction of Mandaluyong City Medical Center (the city's first tertiary hospital) and the Mandaluyong Manpower and Technical-Vocational Training Center.<ref name="ben" /> Abalos was a former member of the Laban ng Demokratikong Pilipino later joining the then newly formed Lakas NUCD-CMD.
Upon being term-limited in 1998, Abalos ran for congressman of the lone district of Mandaluyong but lost to incumbent Neptali Gonzales II.
=== Chairman of MMDA === On January 20, 2001, Abalos was appointed chairman of the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority, a post he held until the following year.
=== Chairman of COMELEC === On June 5, 2002, President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo appointed Abalos to replace Alfredo Benipayo after the latter failed to secure the confirmation of his appointment from the Commission on Appointments.{{citation needed|date=June 2013}} On October 1, 2007, Abalos resigned during a press conference; and Resurreccion Borra would be appointed Acting Chairman.<ref>[https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB119126475808945322?mod=googlenews_wsj WSJ, Philippine Voting Chief Quits Amid Bribe Queries]{{Dead link|date=October 2023 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes}}</ref>
=== Return as Mayor of Mandaluyong === Abalos ran for mayor of Mandaluyong in 2022 under PDP-Laban, with his daughter-in-law, incumbent mayor Menchie Abalos, as his running mate for vice mayor.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://comelec.gov.ph/php-tpls-attachments/2022NLE/TentativeListsofCandidates/NCR/MANDALUYONG.pdf|title=Certified List of Candidates (Mandaluyong)|website=Commission on Elections|access-date=December 29, 2021}}</ref> He said that he would run to fulfill his promise to his deceased wife that he would spend his remaining years serving the people of Mandaluyong.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1497792/ex-comelec-chair-benjamin-abalos-sr-files-candidacy-for-mayor-in-mandaluyong|title=Ex-Comelec chair Ben Abalos Sr. files candidacy for mayor in Mandaluyong|first=John Eric|last=Mendoza|date=October 6, 2021|access-date=December 29, 2021|work=INQUIRER.net}}</ref> He won the elections in a landslide victory, securing a comeback as mayor after 24 years.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1596004/benjamin-abalos-sr-proclaimed-as-mandaluyong-mayor|title=Benjamin Abalos Sr. proclaimed as Mandaluyong mayor|first=John Eric|last=Mendioza|newspaper=Philippine Daily Inquirer|date=May 11, 2022|accessdate=May 18, 2022}}</ref> However, he chose not to seek reelection in 2025.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://tribune.net.ph/2024/10/08/menchie-abalos-files-coc-for-mayoral-race-in-2025-elections|title=Menchie Abalos files COC for mayoral race in 2025 elections|first=Analy|last=Labor|date=October 8, 2024|accessdate=October 14, 2024|work=Daily Tribune}}</ref>
== Controversies== On September 27, 2007, Iloilo Vice Governor Rolex Suplico filed a 64-page impeachment complaint against Abalos, in his capacity as Commission on Elections Chairman, before the House of Representatives of the Philippines regarding the NBN–ZTE deal corruption scandal. It was endorsed by Representatives Teofisto Guingona III (Bukidnon–2nd), Teodoro Casiño (Bayan Muna), and Representative Ma. Isabelle Climaco (Zamboanga City–1st). Affidavits from Romulo Neri and Jose de Venecia III supported the complaint.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/breakingnews/nation/view_article.php?article_id=91083|title=Impeachment raps filed vs Abalos at House by Iloilo vice gov|newspaper=Philippine Daily Inquirer}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.gmanews.tv/story/62200/Impeachment-raps-filed-vs-Abalos-over-ZTE-controversy|title=Impeachment raps filed vs Abalos over ZTE controversy|date=September 27, 2007}}</ref> He was later acquitted by the Sandiganbayan Fourth Division from graft on May 10, 2016.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/785024/ex-comelec-chair-abalos-acquitted-from-graft-over-nbn-zte-deal|title=Ex-Comelec chair Abalos acquitted from graft over NBN-ZTE deal|first=Marc Jayson|last=Cayabyab|date=May 11, 2016|accessdate=January 6, 2025|publisher=Philippine Daily Inquirer}}</ref> His acquittal was upheld by the Supreme Court through a 15-page resolution dated June 14, 2021.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.gmanetwork.com/news/topstories/nation/811171/sc-upholds-dismissal-of-graft-raps-vs-ex-comelec-chair-abalos-over-nbn-zte-deal/story/|title=SC upholds dismissal of graft raps vs ex-Comelec chair Abalos over NBN-ZTE deal|first=Ma. Angelica |last=Garcia|date=November 16, 2021|accessdate=January 6, 2025|work=GMA News}}</ref>
On December 13, 2011, Abalos was arrested for electoral sabotage in the 2007 midterm elections for allegedly manipulating the senatorial election results in Cotabato to favor all 12 senatorial candidates under the TEAM Unity administration coalition. He was detained at the Southern Police District headquarters.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/110603/abalos-detained-seeks-house-arrest|title=Abalos detained, seeks house arrest|first=Jeannette I.|last=Andrade|date=December 14, 2011|accessdate=January 6, 2025|publisher=Philippine Daily Inquirer}}</ref> On June 6, 2012, the Pasay Regional Trial Court (RTC) Branch 117 granted his petition to bail. He was ordered to settle {{Philippine peso|200,000|link=yes}} bond for each the 11 counts of electoral sabotage, totaling to {{Philippine peso|2.2 million}}.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.gmanetwork.com/news/topstories/nation/260812/former-comelec-chief-abalos-allowed-to-post-bail/story/|title=Former Comelec chief Abalos allowed to post bail|date=June 6, 2012|accessdate=January 6, 2025|website=GMA News Online}}</ref> He was later acquitted from 11 counts of electoral sabotage by the Pasay RTC Branch 117 on October 8, 2014,<ref>{{cite news|url=https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/643621/abalos-sr-cleared-of-poll-sabotage|title=Abalos Sr. cleared of poll sabotage|first=Kristine Felisse |last=Mangunay|date=October 9, 2014|accessdate=January 6, 2025|publisher=Philippine Daily Inquirer}}</ref> and of the final two counts by the Pasay RTC Branch 112 on February 2, 2015, both due to lack of evidence.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.philstar.com/headlines/2015/02/03/1419564/abalos-acquitted-poll-sabotage|title=Abalos acquitted of poll sabotage|first=Perseus|last=Echeminada|date=February 3, 2015|accessdate=January 6, 2025|publisher=Philippine Daily Inquirer}}</ref>
== Personal life == Abalos married Corazon de Castro in 1960, with whom he has five children. His sons Benjamin Jr. and Jonathan and daughter Maria Corazon also entered politics. Benjamin Jr. is the incumbent Secretary of the Interior and Local Government, former mayor of Mandaluyong, and former Metropolitan Manila Development Authority chairman, and former councilor of Mandaluyong. Jonathan also served as a three-term city councilor of Mandaluyong.<ref name="bsa" /><ref>{{cite news|url=https://metromanila.politics.com.ph/2021/02/03/charisse-abalos-marks-what-wouldve-been-her-grandparents-61st-wedding-anniversary/|title=Charisse Abalos marks what would've been her grandparents' 61st wedding anniversary|website=Politiko Metro Manila|access-date=March 15, 2021}}</ref> Maria Corazon serves as the barangay captain of Highway Hills, Mandaluyong.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://mandaluyong.gov.ph/government/barangays/barangay-highway-hills/|title=Barangay Highway Hills|accessdate=April 25, 2025|website=City of Mandaluyong}}</ref> His wife died on January 25, 2021, due to severe sepsis, secondary to pneumonia caused by COVID-19.<ref>{{Cite news|last=|first=|date=January 26, 2021|title=Abalos family matriarch Corazon dies after contracting COVID-19|work=ABS-CBN News|url=https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/01/26/21/abalos-family-matriarch-corazon-dies-after-contracting-covid-19|access-date=January 26, 2020}}</ref>
== References == {{Reflist}}
{{S-start}} {{s-off}} {{Succession box| before=Ernesto Domingo| title= Officer-in-Charge Mayor of Mandaluyong | years= 1986–1987 | after= Roman delos Reyes <small>(Officer In-Charge)</small> }} {{Succession box| before=Roman delos Reyes <small>(Officer In-Charge)</small>| title= Mayor of Mandaluyong | years= 1988–1998 | after= Benjamin Abalos, Jr. }} {{Succession box| before=Jejomar Binay| title= Chairman of the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority| years= 2001–2002 | after= Bayani Fernando }} {{Succession box| before= Alfredo Benipayo | title= COMELEC Chairman | years= 2002–2007 | after= Resurreccion Borra<br /><small> (Acting) </small> }} {{s-bef|before=Carmelita Abalos}} {{s-ttl|title=Mayor of Mandaluyong|years=2022–2025}} {{s-aft|after=Carmelita Abalos}} {{end}} {{Commission on Elections (Philippines)}} {{Chairpersons of MMDA}} {{Mayors of Metro Manila}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Abalos, Benjamin}} Category:1934 births Category:Living people Benjamin Category:20th-century mayors of places in the Philippines Category:21st-century mayors of places in the Philippines Category:Arroyo administration personnel Category:Ateneo de Manila University alumni Category:Chairpersons of the Commission on Elections (Philippines) Category:Chairpersons of the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority Category:Lakas–CMD (1991) politicians Category:Manuel L. Quezon University alumni Category:Mayors of Mandaluyong Category:Partido Demokratiko Pilipino politicians Category:Partido Federal ng Pilipinas politicians Category:Politicians from Pangasinan