By Rjay Zuriaga Castor
(This story is part of a series of election reports examining political dynasties in Western Visayas.)
To maintain their family’s dominance in the island province of Guimaras, Governor Joaquin Carlos Rahman Nava and his wife, lone district representative Lucille Ledesma-Nava, are swapping elective positions in the 2025 elections.
Rahman was elected governor in 2022, but instead of seeking reelection, he has filed his candidacy for Congress, a seat currently held by his wife.
Lucille, in turn, is entering provincial politics by running for governor. First elected as congresswoman in 2016, she will complete her term this year, while her husband steps in to ensure the continuity of the well-entrenched Nava network in the province.
The couple’s election bid is not without opposition. Rahman faces former vice governor Vicente De Asis in the congressional race, while Lucille is up against Maggie Cacho for the gubernatorial seat.
In the midterm elections, two other family members are also seeking public office.
Felipe Hilan “Nene” Nava, Rahman’s brother, is running for reelection as a provincial board member.
Anna Philippa, Felipe’s daughter, is running for vice mayor of Jordan, the province’s capital. She currently serves as a Public Relations Officer in Rahman’s office.
A Legacy of Political Control
The Nava family has held significant power in Guimaras for decades.
Their political roots trace back to the family’s patriarch, the late Dr. Catalino Gallego Nava, who served as officer-in-charge governor of the sub-province for less than a month in 1986.
The second and the last elected governor of the sub-province, Catalino oversaw the conversion of Guimaras into a full-fledged province on May 22, 1992. He served as governor until June 30, 1992, before representing Guimaras in Congress in June 1995. He died in office in December 1995.
Since then, his sons, Rahman and Felipe, have alternated between provincial and congressional posts.
Rahman served as governor from 1998 to 2007, then as the lone district representative from 2007 to 2016, before returning to the gubernatorial seat in 2022.
Felipe was governor from 2007 to 2013. He was elected provincial board member for the 2nd district in 2022. In his first term in the provincial board, he chaired the Committee on Health and Committee on Tourism, History and Culture.
Rahman and Felipe have had a long-standing political rivalry. It culminated in 2013 when Rahman supported then-Governor Samuel Gumarin, who defeated Felipe in the gubernatorial race.
Felipe attempted a comeback in the 2016 elections but lost again to Gumarin. In 2019, he ran for mayor of Jordan town but lost again.
The brothers seemed to have finally patched up their indifferences when they attended a mass together before filing their candidacies during the 2022 elections.
In total, the Nava family has held the gubernatorial post for 22 years since Guimaras was still a sub-province. In Congress, they have occupied the lone district representative seat for over 18 years.
If Rahman wins as congressman and Lucille wins as governor in 2025, their political dominance will continue beyond these figures.
The 2025 elections will be a test for Guimarasnons: will they continue to support the Nava family’s control, or will they push for new leadership beyond the dynasty?
