SEVENTEEN senatorial aspirants and 15 party-list groups yesterday formalized their bids to run in the May 2025 national and local polls as the first day of the eight-day period for the filing of certificates of candidacy (COCs) and certificates of nomination and certificate of acceptance of nomination (CON-CANs) kicked off Tuesday.

In a press briefing at the Tent City of the Manila Hotel at the end of Day 1 of the COC filing, Comelec chairman George Garcia said they expected that only a few candidates will file their bids on the first day.

“It is really usually this slow in the filing of COCs on the first day. This number at the national candidates is just normal, right about the average,” said Garcia, adding, “We are still satisfied with the number because there are many individuals interested in running for public office to serve the people.”

He said they expect the number to ramp up in the coming days until the deadline on October 8.

“Expect that around October 3, the number will be higher. Even tomorrow (Wednesday), there will be known personalities that are set to file their COCs,” he said.

Garcia said there were no untoward incidents nationwide during the filing of the COCs.

“It was a successful first day for the COC filing,” said the poll chief.

The filing period for COCs and CON-CANs will run until October 8.

AGRI party-list Rep. Wilbert Lee was the first senatorial aspirant to file his COC for the May 2025 polls.

Preceded by throngs of red-clad supporters and a marching band, Lee filed his COC just minutes after the Comelec opened the filing period to run for senator under the banner of Aksyon Demokratiko.

He said he opted to file early to showcase his seriousness in seeking a higher public office. “We want to show the public that we’re serious in what we’re doing, and we will continue our advocacy in Congress in the Senate,” he said.

Lee is among the strongest voices in Congress who is known for his impassioned advocacies and efficient lawmaking. He is the principal authors of several landmark measures, such as the New Agrarian Emancipation Act, Philippine Salt Industry Development Act, and Anti-Agricultural Economic Sabotage Act, among others.

A staunch health advocate, Lee successfully pushed for the 30 percent across-the-board increase of PhilHealth benefits implemented last February 14.

Re-electionist Sen. Francis Tolentino of the Partido Federal ng Filipinas, Jose Montemayor of Partido Federal ng Maharlika, and Najar Salih of Partido Maharlika also filed their COCs for senator.

Tolentino is included in the senatorial ticket of the administration’s “Alyansa para sa Bagong Pilipinas.”

In an interview after he filed his COC, Tolentino was asked if he will seek the support of former President Rodrigo Duterte despite being part of the administration’s lineup.

“I still hold former President Duterte in the highest esteem. There’s no bad blood, so to speak. I still respect him,” Tolentino said, adding that his decision to ally with Marcos is due to their similarity in economic and foreign policies.

“What I did was not just a mere political decision. It has to be something aligned with my personal principles that one, for instance, in foreign policy,” he said.

Content creators Mark Gamboa and Norris John Okamoto also filed their COCs for senator, saying they will push for the interest of online content creators and fight against the alleged unfair justice system of the poor, respectively.

Other independent candidates who filed their certificates for candidacies for senators were David Chan, Alexander Encarnacion, Janice Padilla, Jose Olivar, Felipe Montealto, Joseph Dy, Daniel Magtira, Happy Lubarbio, Norman Marquez, Phil Delos Reyes, Miguelino Caturan, and Sunang Ditanongun.

PARTY-LIST GROUPS

On the other hand, the Kabayan party-list was the first to file their CON-CAN at the Manila Hotel.

Incumbent Kabayan Rep. Ron Salo, who is set to serve as the group’s campaign manager in the 2025 polls, said a new set of nominees will represent the group, led by first nominee Dr. Jewehl Gay.

He said they are running anew in the May 2025 polls with a goal of continuing their advocacy. “The Kabayan party-list wants to continue the advocacy it started, including health, livelihood, housing, education, and OFW concerns,” Salo said.

The other party-list groups that submitted their list of nominees include Ang Bumbero ng Pilipinas, Manila Teachers, Ako OFW, Lingap, Akay ni Sol, AGAP, BUHAY, Bayan Muna, Coop-Natcco, Kamanggagawa, Magsasaka, ACT-CIS, Senior Citizens, and Diwa.

Tiktok personality Eli San Fernando shall serve as the first nominee of the Kamanggagawa party-list.

San Fernando said their group push for the scrapping of the regional wage rates in the country if it succeeds in the May 2025 polls.

LOCAL RACE

In the local front, Speaker Martin Romualdez filed his COC as representative of Leyte’s first district before Maria Goretti Canas, acting provincial election supervisor of Leyte.

“Ang patuloy na suporta ng ating mga kababayan ang inspirasyon ko upang ipagpatuloy ang ating nasimulan. Isa pong malaking karangalan ang magsilbi sa Leyte at sa buong bansa (The continued support of our people is my inspiration to continue what we’ve started. It’s a huge honor to serve Leyte and the whole country,” Romualdez said in a statement.

The Speaker was accompanied by other top officials of the province, including Gov. Jericho Petilla, Vice Gov. Leonardo Javier, Rep. Karen Javier, as well as mayors Remedios Petilla of Palo, Lovell Ann Yu-Castro (Alang-alang), Eleonor Lugnasin (Babatngon), Norman Sabdao (San Miguel), Amparo Monteza (Santa Fe), Gina Merilo (Tanauan), and Erwin Ocana (Tolosa).

Tacloban City Mayor Alfred Romualdez was represented by Councilor Raymund Romualdez, who is the president of the Liga ng mga Barangay of Tacloban and Region VII.

Local chief executives from the municipalities comprising the second district as well as three board members from various districts of the province were also present at the Comelec office when Romualdez filed his COC.

Pampanga Rep. Gloria Arroyo, a former president, said she will seek a second term as representative of the province’s second district “where I am committed to addressing the needs and priorities of my constituency and the province of Pampanga.”

Arroyo, chairperson emeritus of ruling party Lakas-CMD, was a senator from 1992 until she was elected vice president in 1998. She has yet to file her COC.

Albay Rep. Joey Salceda, chair of the House Committee on Ways and Means, filed his COC for Albay governor through his lawyer, Jong Bonafe, while Navotas Rep. Toby Tiangco filed his COC for reelection as representative of the city’s lone district at the Comelec-NCR office in San Juan City.

Rep. Brian Yamsuan (PL, Bicol Saro) filed his COC for representative of the second district of Parañaque City, facing off with incumbent Rep. Gustavo Tambunting, who is seeking re-election.

Yamsuan unveiled his platform on Health, Opportunities, Peace and Education (HOPE) before supporters who gathered outside the Resurrection of Our Lord Parish in Barangay BF Homes, Parañaque where he attended mass with his wife, Cathy, before filing his COC.

Yamsuan was endorsed by sectoral leaders representing the youth, senior citizens, transport groups, women and the LGBTQIA community during a brief program held at the parish’s parking area.

Yamsuan said he was approached and urged by local leaders in the district to run, with the expectation that his victory will lead to changes in the way that government aid and services are delivered to the people.

“Hindi tayo pwedeng magbulag-bulagan sa maraming pagkukulang na nangyayari sa ating distrito kaya minarapat ko ng mag-file ng kandidatura bilang congressman ng second district (We can’t turn a blind eye to the many shortcomings happening in our district, that’s why I decided to file my candidacy for congressman of the second district),” he said.

Sen. Nancy Binay, who is on her second term as senator, filed her COC for the mayoral seat of Makati City, formalizing her bid to replace her younger sister, Abby, who is on her last term as local chief executive.

Abby has been endorsed by President Marcos Jr. as among the administration coalition’s senatorial candidates for the 2025 midterm polls.

Nancy filed her COC at Barangay Valenzuela. She will run alongside actor-turned-politician Monsour del Rosario.

In an interview after filing her certificate of candidacy, Nancy said she had been hesitant about seeking the Makati mayoral seat because Abby wants her husband, Rep. Luis Campos, to succeed her.

She said she has yet to talk with her sister about her mayoralty bid.

“Walang puwang para makapag-usap kami. Malungkot di ba? Pero pamilya pa rin kami di ba, mas mangingibabaw ang pagiging pamilya namin (We have no chance to talk. It is a sad thing. But we are still one family and that will prevail above everything else),” she said.

“Walang Abby Binay sa balota kaya hindi kami magkalaban na magkapatid (There is no Abby Binay in the ballot, so we are not rivals here),” she added.

In Quezon City, Mayor Joy Belmonte and Vice Mayor Gian Sotto filed their COCs for reelection at the Amoranto Sports Complex. They were accompanied by their fathers, former Quezon City Rep. Feliciano Belmonte Jr and former Senate President Tito Sotto.

In a statement, Belmonte said the legacy of the Belmonte administration in the city is not just about the number of buildings and houses that were built, the jobs and jobs and livelihood opportunities created, and the reforms that were institutionalized.

“It is how we have improved the lives of our QCitizens and earned their trust in the past five years,” said Belmonte.

“It is the resounding vote of confidence from the business sector, even amid the pandemic and other challenging situations. Ultimately, what matters most is the lasting impact we have made on the people we serve,” added Belmonte.

Belmonte, who is seeking a third term as the city’s mayor, said her administration have provided and continues to provide services to Quezon City residents.

If elected, Belmonte vowed to bring further progress in the city.

SATELLITE COC OFFICE

Garcia said the Comelec has approved the establishment of a satellite office in Maguindanao del Norte to receive COCs for local elective posts.

Garcia said the move is intended to avoid a repeat of the Maguindanao massacre.

“We allowed having a satellite venue for the COC filing since we know that the positions there are hotly contested and our local office there is inside a certain compound,” he said.

“We don’t want aspirants to have any hesitations in filing their COCs so we opened an alternative venue for the COC filing that is also within the jurisdiction of the provincial election office but outside the compound,” he added.

Aside from the intense political rivalry, Garcia said they are also concerned that other conflicts may result to violence during the COC filing period.

“We want to avoid cases of rido, rivalry, which are common in the area. Thus, violence could really erupt,” he said, noting that “the Maguindanao massacre happened during the filing of COCs. Had there been a satellite office, could it have been prevented? These are the lessons, the experiences, where we need to undertake preventive actions to avoid similar incidents.”

Back in 2009, a total of 58 people, including 34 journalists, were killed in the town of Ampatuan in Maguindanao.

PEACEFUL

PNP chief Gen. Rommel Francisco Marbil described as peaceful the first day of the eight-day filing of COCs.

“It’s very peaceful… My guidance to our policemen is to make sure that we are apolitical and ensure that the filing of the COCs will be very peaceful,” Marbil said, adding: “(We will) make sure that the filing (of COCs) will be orderly. We also want to make sure that the coming elections will be orderly.”

Marbil urged police commanders to be “more vigilant” to prevent election-related violent incidents, including killings.

The PNP chief said policemen assigned in areas where they have relatives running in the elections will be reassigned.

“They have to be out (of these areas) to ensure we are apolitical. They should not be assigned to areas where they have relatives (running in the elections),” he said, as he warned that policemen who will be involved in partisan political activities will face administrative charges.

This year, Marbil said the PNP is already in the process of identifying potential election hotspots.

“There will be movement of our troops (policemen) to lessen violent incidents which we are expecting. We need more policemen on the ground, that is what I want to be implemented,” he said.

In Rizal, the Rizal Provincial Police Office (PPO) said it deployed 1,076 personnel to ensure the safety of the people during the filing of COCs in the province.

Col. Felipe Maraggun, Rizal PPO director, said the PNP personnel were deployed to different Comelec offices in the province. – With Wendell Vigilia, Ashzel Hachero, Victor Reyes and Christian Oineza