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Thelegislative districts of Sulu are the representations of theprovince ofSulu in thevarious national legislatures of thePhilippines. The province is currently represented in thelower house of theCongress of the Philippines through itsfirst andsecond congressional districts.
Initially being excluded from representation in thelower house of thePhilippine Legislature in 1907, the then-non-Christian-majority areas of the Philippines — which included theDepartment of Mindanao and Sulu, of which Sulu (including what is nowTawi-Tawi) was part — were finally extended legislative representation with the passage of thePhilippine Autonomy Act in 1916 by theUnited States Congress. The Revised Administrative Code (Act No. 2711) enacted on March 10, 1917, further elaborated on the manner by which these areas would be represented.[1] The non-Christian areas were to be collectively represented in theupper house's12th senatorial district by two senators, both appointed by theGovernor-General.[1] Five assembly members, also appointed by the Governor-General, were to represent the seven component provinces of Department of Mindanao and Sulu —Agusan,Bukidnon,Cotabato,Davao,Lanao,Sulu andZamboanga — in thelower house as asingle at-large district.
These arrangements remained in place despite the abolition of the Department in 1920. It lasted until 1935, when each of the seven provinces was provided a single representative to theNational Assembly of the Philippines, albeit the manner of election varying between provinces. Voters of the more Christianized provinces ofAgusan,Bukidnon,Davao andZamboanga could elect their representative through popular vote by virtue of Article VI, Section 1 of the 1935 Constitution.[2] In theMuslim-dominated provinces ofCotabato,Lanao andSulu, however, voter qualifications were more restrictive: the only persons allowed to vote for the province's representative were past and present municipal officials (municipal president, vice-president, municipal councilors); present senators, assembly representatives and 1935 Constitutional Convention delegates; provincial governors and members of provincial boards; and any persons currently residing in the concerned province who held any of the aforementioned positions in the past.[3] This was the manner by whichSulu's representative was elected in1935.
The1st National Assembly of the Philippines passed Commonwealth Act No. 44 on October 13, 1936, to finally give all qualified voters ofSulu (along withCotabato andLanao) the right to elect theirown representatives through popular vote.[4] Voters began to elect their representatives in this manner beginning in1938.
In the disruption caused by theSecond World War, the Province of Sulu senttwo delegates to theNational Assembly of the Japanese-sponsoredSecond Philippine Republic: one was the provincial governor (anex officio member), while the other was elected through a provincial assembly ofKALIBAPI members during theJapanese occupation of the Philippines. Upon the restoration of thePhilippine Commonwealth in 1945 the province retained its pre-warlone congressional district.
Sulu (excluding Tawi-Tawi, which became a separate province in 1973[5]) was represented in theInterim Batasang Pambansa as part ofRegion IX from 1978 to 1984. The province returnedone representative, elected at large, to theRegular Batasang Pambansa in1984.
Under the new Constitution which was proclaimed on February 11, 1987, the province was reapportioned into two congressional districts;[6] each elected its member to the restoredHouse of Representatives startingthat same year.
Tawi-Tawi last formed part of its representation in 1972.
Sulu's current congressional delegation is composed of two members.
Lakas–CMD (2)
| District | Current Representative | Party | ConstituentLGUs | Population (2020)[7] | Area[8] | Map | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Image | ||||||||
| 1st | Samier Tan (since2022) Maimbung | Lakas–CMD | 585,458 | -,---.-- km² |  | |||
| 2nd | .jpg) | Abdulmunir M. Arbison (since2025) Luuk | Lakas–CMD | 414,650 | -,---.-- km² |  | ||
| Period | Representative[9] |
|---|---|
| 1st National Assembly 1935–1938 | Ombra Amilbangsa |
| 2nd National Assembly 1938–1941 | Gulamu Rasul |
| 1st Commonwealth Congress 1945 | Ombra Amilbangsa |
| 1st Congress 1946–1949 | |
| 2nd Congress 1949–1953 | Gulamu Rasul[a] |
| Ombra Amilbangsa[b] | |
| 3rd Congress 1953–1957 | |
| 4th Congress 1957–1961 | |
| 5th Congress 1961–1965 | Salih Ututalum[c] |
| 6th Congress 1965–1969 | |
| Indanan Anni[d] | |
| 7th Congress 1969–1972 |
Notes
| Period | Representatives[9] |
|---|---|
| National Assembly 1943–1944 | Gulamu Rasul[10] |
| Ombra Amilbangsa(ex officio)[10] |
| Period | Representative[9] |
|---|---|
| Regular Batasang Pambansa 1984–1986 | Hussin T. Loong |
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)