Ralph Gonzalez Recto (; born January 11, 1964) is a Filipino politician currently serving as the 33rd secretary of finance since 2024, under President

Bongbong Marcos Ferdinand "Bongbong" Romualdez Marcos Jr. (, , ; born September 13, 1957), commonly referred to by the initials BBM or PBBM, is a Filipino politician who has served as the 17th president of the Philippines since 2022. He is the second child ...

. He previously served as the representative for

Batangas Batangas, officially the Province of Batangas ( ), is a first class province of the Philippines located in the southwestern part of Luzon in the Calabarzon region. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 2,908,494 people, making ...

' 6th district and as the House Deputy Speaker from 2022 to 2024. Recto also previously served three terms in the

Senate A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

: from 2001 to 2007 and from 2010 to 2022, and he had served as president pro tempore of the Senate and Senate Minority Leader. He started his political career as the representative of Batangas' 4th district from 1992 to 2001. In 2007, Recto lost his Senate reelection bid because, as many analysts believed, he had authored the unpopular EVAT (Expanded Value Added Tax) law. In July 2008, he was appointed to head the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) in the Arroyo administration but resigned from his position in August 2009 in preparation for another run for the Senate in the 2010 elections. He is a grandson of statesman Claro M. Recto. His wife is actress-politician Vilma Santos.

Early life

Recto comes from a political family. His grandfather, the late nationalist and statesman Claro M. Recto, was a

Senator A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or Legislative chamber, chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the Ancient Rome, ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior ...

for several terms. He was an Assemblyman during the

Regular Batasang Pambansa The Regular Batasang Pambansa (English language, English: Regular National Assembly), or the First Batasang Pambansa, was the meeting of the Batasang Pambansa (legislature), Batasang Pambansa from the beginning of its session on July 23, 1984 ...

while his older brother, Ricky Recto, was the former vice governor of the province of

. His late mother is Carmen Gonzalez-Recto (d. 2013). His sister, Plinky Recto, is an actress and TV host.

Education

Recto acquired a Bachelor of Science in commerce at the De La Salle University in 1989. In 1990, he entered the College of Public Administration of the

University of the Philippines Diliman The University of the Philippines Diliman (also called UPD; ), also referred to as UP Diliman, is a State university and college (Philippines), public, coeducational, Research university, research university located in Diliman, Quezon City, Ph ...

to study Master of Public Administration, but only earned 36 academic units, hence unable to finish the graduate degree. Recto later took a Strategic Business Economics Program (SBEP) at the University of Asia and the Pacific in 1993, where he acquired a Certificate in Business Economics (CBE). Recto took up a 6-day Certificate of Leadership Scholarship Course at the John F. Kennedy School of Government or

Harvard Kennedy School The John F. Kennedy School of Government, commonly referred to as Harvard Kennedy School (HKS), is the school of public policy of Harvard University, a private university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Harvard Kennedy School offers master's de ...

Harvard University Harvard University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the History of the Puritans in North America, Puritan clergyma ...

Boston Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

Massachusetts Massachusetts ( ; ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Maine to its east, Connecticut and Rhode ...

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

in 1997.

Political career

House of Representatives: 1992–2001

Recto is the youngest elected member of the House of Representatives during the 9th Congress. He is also the youngest elective official of his term. He also holds an unprecedented record in the congressional election history of Batangas for winning in all precincts, barangays, and municipalities, together with Lipa City, in the 1995 and 1998 elections. He garnered 98% of the votes cast in those two elections in the 4th District of

. During his three terms (from 1992 to 2001) as a member of the

House of Representatives House of Representatives is the name of legislative bodies in many countries and sub-national entities. In many countries, the House of Representatives is the lower house of a bicameral legislature, with the corresponding upper house often ...

, most of his legislative measures enacted into law deal with economic reforms and

poverty alleviation Poverty reduction, poverty relief, or poverty alleviation is a set of measures, both economic and humanitarian, that are intended to permanently lift people out of poverty. Measures, like those promoted by Henry George in his economics classi ...

, among which are the Social Reform and Poverty Alleviation Act; the Philippine Economic Zone Law; Amendment to the Special Economic Zone Law; the Retail Trade Liberalization Law; Regional Headquarters Law; and the Comprehensive Tax Reform Law.

First term in the Senate: 2001–2007

Recto was elected to the

in 2001, becoming the youngest Senator of the 12th Congress at the age of 37. In the Senate, he chaired the Committees on Ways and Means and on Trade and Industry. He was co-chairman of the Congressional Oversight Committees on the Proper Implementation of the National Internal Revenue Code (NIRC) and on the Official Development Assistance (ODA). He was also chairman of the Accounts committee. During his first six-year term as Senator, he was largely responsible for the passage of laws with positive impact to consumers, small entrepreneurs, workers and industry.

National Economic and Development Authority: 2008–2009

After his failed bid for re-election to the Senate in 2007, Recto joined the board of the Union Bank of the Philippines. He is said to have been offered the position of Secretary of Finance but it was subsequently denied by Malacañang. President

Gloria Macapagal Arroyo Maria Gloria Macaraeg Macapagal-Arroyo (; born April 5, 1947), often referred to as PGMA or GMA, is a Filipino academic and politician who served as the 14th president of the Philippines from Presidency of Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, 2001 to 2010 ...

, on July 23, 2008, named him as the new director-general of National Economic and Development Authority, replacing Augusto Santos, acting NEDA chief. On August 11, 2009, he resigned as NEDA secretary and Presidential Adviser for Economic Planning, in preparation for another run for Senate in the 2010 election.

Second term in the Senate: 2010–2016

He was proclaimed as one of the winning senatorial candidates of the 2010 Senate elections. On July 22, 2013, at the start of the first day of the 1st Regular Session of the Senate for the 16th Congress, Recto was elected Senate President Pro-Tempore, the second highest post in the Senate and was also the Chairman of the Senate Committee on Science and Technology and member of the bicameral Commission on Appointments.

Third term in the Senate: 2016–2022

Recto ran for re-election in the

2016 Philippine Senate election The 2016 election of members to the Senate of the Philippines was the 32nd Philippine senatorial elections, election of members to the Senate of the Philippines. It was held on Monday, May 9, 2016, The seats of 12 senators 2010 Philippine Senat ...

under the Koalisyon ng Daang Matuwid of LP standard bearer Mar Roxas and won placing 11th in the polls. On the opening day of the 17th Congress, July 25, 2016, Senator

Francis Escudero Francis Joseph "Chiz" Guevara Escudero (, born October 10, 1969) is a Filipino politician and lawyer who has served as the 25th president of the Senate of the Philippines since May 20, 2024. Escudero has served as a Senate of the Philippines, s ...

nominated Recto for the presidency. Senator Antonio Trillanes IV seconded Escudero's nomination. During nominal voting, Koko Pimentel and Recto voted for each other. After losing the vote, Recto automatically became the Minority Leader. He was joined by Escudero and Trillanes in the minority bloc. Recto, in his acceptance speech for the post, vowed that the minority would cooperate with the Duterte administration's plans if these serve "the public interest." However, he said, they would be "duty-bound" to oppose the majority's agenda if it "hurts the nation." When the Senate underwent a reorganization on February 27, 2017, Recto, after getting 17 votes, was declared Senate President Pro Tempore, replacing Franklin Drilon. For the 17th Congress, he authored the following laws: Murang Kuryente Act, Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program Act, Child Safety in Motor Vehicles Act, Universal Health Care Act, Philhealth Coverage for PWDs, National Integrated Cancer Control Act, Tax Amnesty Act, The New Central Bank Act, Lifting Quantitative Import Restriction on Rice, Social Security Act, First 1000 Days of Life, Universal Access to Quality Tertiary Education, Comprehensive National Feeding Program, Free Irrigation Service, Ease of Doing Business/Expanded Anti-Red Tape Act, Free Internet Access in Public Places, Extending the Validity of Philippine Passport and Driver's License, National ID System, and Designating Casinos as Covered Persons under the AMLA. Recto kept his post as Senate President Pro Tempore in the 18th Congress. In September 2018, Recto left the Liberal Party to re-join the

Nacionalista Party The Nacionalista Party (Filipino language, Filipino and Spanish language in the Philippines, Spanish: ''Partido Nacionalista''; , NP) is a political party in the Philippines which is the oldest existing party in the country and in Southeast Asi ...

House of Representatives: 2022–2024

Upon being term-limited in the Senate, in

2022 The year began with another wave in the COVID-19 pandemic, with SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant, Omicron spreading rapidly and becoming the dominant variant of the SARS-CoV-2 virus worldwide. Tracking a decrease in cases and deaths, 2022 saw ...

, Recto ran for a comeback to the House of Representatives, this time at the 6th district of Batangas, which consists of only the city of Lipa. During the campaign, he had endorsed the presidential bid of Manila Mayor Isko Moreno. He then won the election unopposed, succeeding his wife Vilma Santos who chose not to seek reelection. On July 27, 2022, Recto was named as a House Deputy Speaker under the speakership of

Martin Romualdez Ferdinand Martin Gomez Romualdez (, born November 14, 1963) is a Filipino businessman, lawyer, and politician who has served as the 24th Speaker of the House of Representatives of the Philippines, speaker of the House of Representatives since 2 ...

Secretary of Finance: 2024–present

On January 11, 2024, within his 60th birthday, Recto was appointed by President

as the Secretary of Finance. He took his oath of office on January 12, 2024, succeeding

Benjamin Diokno Benjamin Estoista Diokno (born March 31, 1948) is a Filipino economist who currently serves as one of the six members of the Monetary Board of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas, which conducts the country's monetary policy and supervises its fin ...

, while eventually vacating the posts of the House Deputy Speaker and the House Representative of the 6th district of Batangas, simultaneously. The Commission on Appointments confirmed Recto's appointment as finance secretary on March 13, 2024. On May 22, 2025, President Marcos ordered members of his cabinet to tender their courtesy resignations in the aftermath of the May 12, 2025 midterm elections. Recto complied to this order. He will continue to serve as secretary until President Marcos accepts his resignation, if the President does so.

Personal life

He is married to actress and former

Representative Vilma Santos-Recto, with whom he has one son, Ryan Recto. He is the stepfather of actor Luis Manzano. He currently lives in Ayala Alabang,

Muntinlupa Muntinlupa (), officially the City of Muntinlupa (), is a Cities of the Philippines#Legal classification, highly urbanized city in the Metro Manila, National Capital Region of the Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population o ...

and in Inosluban, Lipa.

References

External links

Official WebsiteOfficial Facebook PageRecto's Senate Bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Recto, Ralph 1964 births Living people Politicians from Quezon City People from Lipa, Batangas Ralph Presidents pro tempore of the Senate of the Philippines Senators of the 18th Congress of the Philippines Senators of the 17th Congress of the Philippines Senators of the 16th Congress of the Philippines Senators of the 15th Congress of the Philippines Senators of the 13th Congress of the Philippines Senators of the 12th Congress of the Philippines Members of the House of Representatives of the Philippines from Batangas Directors-general of the National Economic and Development Authority of the Philippines Secretaries of finance of the Philippines Laban ng Demokratikong Pilipino politicians Nacionalista Party politicians Lakas–CMD politicians Liberal Party (Philippines) politicians Ateneo de Manila University alumni De La Salle University alumni De La Salle–College of Saint Benilde alumni Arroyo administration cabinet members Bongbong Marcos administration cabinet members University of Asia and the Pacific alumni Minority leaders of the Senate of the Philippines