Lucy Torres-Gomez | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Torres-Gomez in 2019 | |
| Mayor ofOrmoc | |
| Assumed office June 30, 2022 | |
| Vice Mayor | Leo Locsin Sr. (2022-2025) Leo Locsin Jr. (2025-present) |
| Preceded by | Richard Gomez |
| Member of thePhilippine House of Representatives fromLeyte’s4th district | |
| In office June 30, 2013 – June 30, 2022 | |
| Preceded by | Vacant |
| Succeeded by | Richard Gomez |
| In office June 30, 2010 – March 19, 2013 | |
| Preceded by | Eufrocino Codilla Sr. |
| Succeeded by | Vacant |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Lucy Marie Martinez Torres (1974-12-11)December 11, 1974 (age 50) |
| Political party | PFP (2023–present) |
| Other political affiliations | PDP–Laban (2016–2023) Liberal (2009–2016) |
| Spouse | |
| Children | Juliana Marie Beatriz T. Gomez |
| Education | University of the Philippines Visayas /University of the Philippines Cebu (BS) |
| Website | House of Representatives |
| Military career | |
| Allegiance |  Philippines |
| Branch |  Philippine ArmyArmy Reserve Command |
| Years of service | 2023–present |
| Rank | Lieutenant Colonel |
Lucy Marie Martinez Torres-Gomez (néeTorres; December 11, 1974), is aFilipina actress and politician currently serving as the mayor ofOrmoc since 2022. She previously served as theRepresentative forLeyte's4th district from June 2010 to March 2013 and from June 2013 to June 2022.[2]
She is married to fellow actor turned politicianRichard Gomez, who currently serves as the representative for Leyte's 4th district.[3][4]
Torres-Gomez was born on December 11, 1974, inOrmoc,Leyte,Philippines to Manuel "Manoling" Torres Jr. and Julie Martinez, the second of four children. She has an older sister and two younger brothers.[5][6] For primary and secondary school, she attended the Benedictine founded Saint Peter's College in Ormoc.[7] Torres-Gomez later attended theUniversity of the Philippines Cebu (then a college of theUniversity of the Philippines Visayas), from which she earned aBachelor of Science degree inbusiness management.[6]
In 1993, Torres-Gomez shot a TV commercial for Lux Shampoo atLake Caliraya,Laguna, where she met her future husband, Richard Gomez. Five years later in 1998, the two starred in theABS-CBN television sitcomRichard Loves Lucy, and married that same year.[3][6][8] Torres-Gomez has also hosted theTV5 reality dance competition showShall We Dance? and theQ lifestyle showThe Sweet Life, and endorses Philippine brandsbench/, and Kashieca.[3][9]
Torres-Gomez was elected the Representative for Leyte's 4th legislative district as substitute candidate for her husband Richard Gomez on May 10, 2010. Gomez was disqualified by theCommission on Elections (COMELEC) due to his lack of one year residency in the district, a requirement of eligibility for office.[10] On March 19, 2013, theSupreme Court, ruled on a protest filed by fellow congressional candidate Eufrocino Codilla Jr., ousting Torres-Gomez from office. The Courts said that she "did not validly substitute" her husband.[11] Her ousting did not affect her re-election bid, and she regained her seat inMay of that same year, beating incumbent Ormoc Mayor Eric Codilla.[12] In May 2016, Torres-Gomez was againre-elected as representative, defeating Violeta Codilla.[13]
As congresswoman, Torres-Gomez has principally authored over 100 bills and co-authored 35. She is the chairperson of theHouse Committee on Disaster Resilience, and the vice chairperson of committees onTourism, andWomen and Gender Equality, and the special committee onCreative Industry and Performing Arts.[2] She voted against theReproductive Health Bill in December 2012, explaining that the refusal ofAlbay Rep.Edcel Lagman, one of the bill's authors, to include a definition of when human life begins was the "core of my objection to the bill".[14][15] Although she is a Marian devotee, Torres-Gomez voted in favor of a bill reimposing the death penalty in March 2017, reasoning that it was only limited to those who engaged in the illegal drug trade.[15][16]
Torres-Gomez, together with husbandRichard Gomez, was a member of the then-rulingLiberal Party during her early political career, but left in June 2016 to join thePartido Demokratiko Pilipino–Lakas ng Bayan (PDP–Laban) shortly afterRodrigo Duterte won thepresidential election.[17]
At the height of theCOVID-19 pandemic in June 2020, Torres-Gomez expressed her support for the controversialAnti-Terrorism Act of 2020, stating that fear of the abuse of law is not a valid reason to reject needed legislation.[18] The bill was signed into law as Republic Act No. 11479 on July 3, 2020.[19] The law's constitutionality was challenged in theSupreme Court by multiple groups and were later declared unconstitutional some parts of thaw law.[20][21]
Torres-Gomez and her husband, representativeRichard Gomez ofLeyte's 4th district, have been alleged byAlbuera, Leyte mayoral candidate Kerwin Espinosa to be connected to an assassination attempt on his life on April 10, 2025.[22][23] In his claim, Espinosa stated that Ormoc police chief Reydante Ariza, a suspect in the incident, would have only answered to the Gomez couple, though he refrained from accusing them outright of instructing Ariza to target him.[23] Gomez has denounced Espinosa's statement, claiming that the assassination attempt on Espinosa was "scripted",[24][25] while Torres-Gomez would later file both a disqualification case and a criminal case against Espinosa for challenging her husband to a gun duel, which she deemed a threat against his life.[26]
Torres-Gomez married actor and Leyte representativeRichard Gomez on April 28, 1998 at the Saints Peter and Paul Parish Church in Ormoc,Leyte.[27] They currently reside in Ormoc, and have one daughter, Juliana Marie Beatriz (b. 2000),[3][28] who graduatedcum laude from theUP National College of Public Administration and Governance.[29]
Torres-Gomez isRoman Catholic.[7] She speaksCebuano,English, andTagalog.
In 2018, Torres-Gomez was named Most Stylish Woman byPhilippine Tatler.[30]
| Year | Office | Party | Votes received | Result | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total | % | P. | Swing | |||||
| 2010 | Representative (Leyte–4th) | Liberal | 101,250 | 56.79% | 1st | — | Won | |
| 2013 | 106,291 | 53.29% | 1st | -3.50 | Won | |||
| 2016 | 137,601 | 62.50% | 1st | +9.21 | Won | |||
| 2019 | PDP–Laban | 178,919 | 77.77% | 1st | +15.27 | Won | ||
| 2022 | Mayor ofOrmoc | 73,866 | 62.28% | 1st | — | Won | ||
| 2025 | PFP | 89,123 | 65.00% | 1st | +2.72 | Won | ||
| Year | Title | Role |
|---|---|---|
| 2011 | Ang Panday 2 | Ina Engkantada |
| Year | Title | Role |
|---|---|---|
| 1998–2001 | Richard Loves Lucy | Lucy |
| 2003–2004 | All About You | Host |
| 2004–2007 | Bahay Mo Ba 'To? | Lucinda |
| 2004–2005 | Forever in My Heart | Herself |
| 2005–2010 | Shall We Dance? | Host |
| 2007–2011 | The Sweet Life | |
| 2007 | Mga Mata ni Anghelita | Birheng Maria |
| 2010–2011 | P.O.5 | Host |
| 2010–2013 | Talentadong Pinoy | Judge |
| 2013 | Showbiz Police: Intriga Under Arrest | Host |
| 2014 | Celebrity Dance Battle |
Itong si [Reydante] Ariza, sa pagkakaalam ko, tauhan nila [Richard Gomez and Lucy Torres-Gomez] ito. [...] Mahirap naman