Domingo Imperial (August 4, 1890 – July 19, 1965) was a Filipino politician.

Early life and education

He was the son of David Imperial and Lena Fernandez. He attended the

San Beda College es, Universidad de San Beda , image = San Beda University seal.svg , image_size = 150px , caption = University Seal , latin_name = Universitas Sancti Bedæ , former_names ...

Liceo de Manila The Manila Central University also referred to by its acronym MCU, and formerly named as the ''Escuela de Farmacia del Liceo de Manila'') is a private, non-sectarian, stock basic and higher education institution located on EDSA, Caloocan, Phil ...

and the

University of Santo Tomas The University of Santo Tomas (also known as UST and officially as the Pontifical and Royal University of Santo Tomas, Manila) is a private, Catholic research university in Manila, Philippines. Founded on April 28, 1611, by Spanish friar Miguel ...

, graduating from the latter with a Bachelor of Arts degree. He then taught in the Investra Señora del Rosario College and in the Colegio Mercantil (now

National University A national university is mainly a university created or managed by a government, but which may also at the same time operate autonomously without direct control by the state. Some national universities are associated with national cultural or po ...

), from 1907 to 1908 and studied law in Escuela de la Jurisprudencia, finishing his course in 1912, and passed the bar examinations with the highest average the same year. He later established his law office in Albay. Imperial belonged to a family that dominated politics in Albay for many years. His cousin Carlos Imperial was Albay's representative to the

1st Philippine Legislature The First Philippine Legislature was the first session of the Philippine Legislature, the first representative legislature of the Philippines. Then known as the Philippine Islands, the Philippines under the sovereign control of the United States ...

and a Justice of the

Supreme Court of the Philippines The Supreme Court ( fil, Kataas-taasang Hukuman; colloquially referred to as the ''Korte Suprema'' lso used in formal writing is the highest court in the Philippines. The Supreme Court was established by the Second Philippine Commission on Ju ...

. His cousin Leoncio Imperial was also a senator from 1917 to 1922 and governor from 1912 to 1916 and from 1922 to 1925. His brother, Jose Imperial was also governor of Albay. His son,

Carlos R. Imperial Carlos "Papay" del Rosario Imperial (July 15, 1930 – April 11, 2010) was a 2nd district representative of Albay in the Philippines. He was a member of the Imperial family, a prominent political family in the area. Early life and career Carlos ...

, was a congressman for the 2nd district of Albay and an MP in the

Interim Batasang Pambansa The Interim Batasang Pambansa (English: Interim National Assembly) was the legislature of the Republic of the Philippines from its inauguration on June 12, 1978 to June 5, 1984. It served as a transitional legislative body mandated by the 1973 ...

Political career

In 1934, he was elected Senator from the 6th District comprising the

Bicol region Bicol, known formally as the Bicol Region or colloquially as Bicolandia ( bcl, Rehiyon kan Bikol; Rinconada Bikol: ''Rehiyon ka Bikol''; Waray Sorsogon, Masbateño: ''Rehiyon san Bikol''; tl, Rehiyon ng Bikol), is an administrative region of ...

. In the

1935 Philippine presidential election The 1935 Philippine presidential and vice presidential elections were held on September 16, 1935. This was the first election since the enactment of the Tydings–McDuffie Act, a law that paved the way for a transitory government, as well as the ...

, he was one of the chief campaign managers in the region for the

Nacionalista The Nacionalista Party (Filipino and Spanish: ''Partido Nacionalista''; ) is the oldest political party in both the Philippines and in Southeast Asia in general. It is responsible for leading the country throughout the majority of the 20th ce ...

ticket of President

Manuel Quezon Manuel Luis Quezon y Molina, (; 19 August 1878 – 1 August 1944), also known by his initials MLQ, was a Filipino lawyer, statesman, soldier and politician who served as president of the Commonwealth of the Philippines from 1935 until his dea ...

and Vice President

Sergio Osmeña Sergio Osmeña Sr. (, ; 9 September 1878 – 19 October 1961) was a Filipino lawyer and politician who served as the fourth president of the Philippines from 1944 to 1946. He was vice president under Manuel L. Quezon. Upon Quezon's sudden ...

. He was later appointed by Quezon as one of the first justices of the

Court of Appeals A court of appeals, also called a court of appeal, appellate court, appeal court, court of second instance or second instance court, is any court of law that is empowered to hear an appeal of a trial court or other lower tribunal. In much of t ...

. In 1941, Imperial was elected in the Senate elections on November 11, 1941 as a candidate of the

Nacionalista Party The Nacionalista Party (Filipino and Spanish: ''Partido Nacionalista''; ) is the oldest political party in both the Philippines and in Southeast Asia in general. It is responsible for leading the country throughout the majority of the 20th ce ...

. However, he and other Senators were not able to take office due to the invasion and occupation of the Philippines by the Japanese the following month. He was only able to serve when the body was reconvened after the Liberation of the country in 1945 and served until 1946. In the meantime, he was appointed as an

Associate Justice Associate justice or associate judge (or simply associate) is a judicial panel member who is not the chief justice in some jurisdictions. The title "Associate Justice" is used for members of the Supreme Court of the United States and some state ...

of the

Supreme Court A supreme court is the highest court within the hierarchy of courts in most legal jurisdictions. Other descriptions for such courts include court of last resort, apex court, and high (or final) court of appeal. Broadly speaking, the decisions of ...

by the Japanese-installed

Philippine Executive Commission The Philippine Executive Commission (PEC; Tagalog: ''Komisyong Tagapagpaganap ng Pilipinas'') was a provisional government set up to govern the Philippine archipelago during World War II. It was established with sanction from the occupying Imp ...

from 1942 to 1944, but was not recognized as such until 2019. In 1951, Imperial was appointed by President

Elpidio Quirino Elpidio Rivera Quirino (born Elpidio Quirino y Rivera; ; November 16, 1890 – February 29, 1956) was a Filipino lawyer and politician who served as the sixth president of the Philippines from 1948 to 1953. A lawyer by profession, Quirino enter ...

as Chairman of the

Commission on Elections An election commission is a body charged with overseeing the implementation of electioneering process of any country. The formal names of election commissions vary from jurisdiction to jurisdiction, and may be styled an electoral commission, a c ...

following the death of Vicente de Vera. During his tenure, he oversaw several electoral exercises such as the 1951 Senate election, the 1953 presidential election, the 1955 Senate election, and the 1957 presidential election. He resigned from office in 1958.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Imperial, Domingo Chairpersons of the Commission on Elections (Philippines) 1890 births 1965 deaths Associate Justices of the Supreme Court of the Philippines Nacionalista Party politicians Politicians from Albay Senators of the 10th Philippine Legislature Senators of the 1st Congress of the Commonwealth of the Philippines Members of the Senate of the Philippines from the 6th district