Ballesteros, Cagayan

Ballesteros (Ili nat Ballesteros; Ili ti Ballesteros; Bayan ng Ballesteros), officially the Municipality of Ballesteros, is a 4th class municipality in the province of Cagayan, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 34,488 people.

It is generally populated by Ilocano people.

History
Ballesteros was formerly a barrio of Abulug named Santa Cruz, which was made an independent municipality in 1911. It was named after Gregorio Ballesteros, a Filipino priest who spearheaded the development of the community.

Barangays
Ballesteros is politically subdivided into 19 barangays. Each barangay consists of puroks while some have sitios.

• Ammubuan

• Baran

• Cabaritan East

• Cabaritan West

• Cabayu

• Cabuluan East

• Cabuluan West

• Centro East (Poblacion)

• Centro West (Poblacion)

• Fugu

• Mabuttal East

• Mabuttal West

• Nararagan

• Palloc

• Payagan East

• Payagan West

• San Juan

• Santa Cruz

• Zitanga

Demographics
In the 2020 census, the population of Ballesteros, Cagayan, was 34,488 people, with a density of undefined PD/km2.

Local government
Ballesteros, belonging to the second legislative district of the province of Cagayan, is governed by a mayor designated as its local chief executive and by a municipal council as its legislative body in accordance with the Local Government Code. The mayor, vice mayor, and the councilors are elected directly by the people through an election which is being held every three years.

Education
The Schools Division of Cagayan governs the town's public education system. The division office is a field office of the DepEd in Cagayan Valley region. The office governs the public and private elementary and public and private high schools throughout the municipality.