{"id":241,"date":"2024-10-15T05:27:54","date_gmt":"2024-10-15T05:27:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dahjournalist.com\/?p=241"},"modified":"2024-10-15T05:51:07","modified_gmt":"2024-10-15T05:51:07","slug":"election-fever-heats-up-in-southern-leyte","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dahjournalist.com\/?p=241","title":{"rendered":"Election fever heats up in Southern Leyte"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n

The filing of Certificates of Candidacy (COCs) from October 1 to 8, 2024, officially marked the start of the election season for the May 12, 2025 polls. Candidates rushed to the Commission on Elections to formalize their bids for various government positions.
In Eastern Visayas, political dynasties dominated the weeklong COC filing, with some clans running unopposed or against lesser-known challengers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n


In Southern Leyte, the race for key positions, such as congressional seats, governor, and mayor, has sparked excitement as candidates prepare for intense electoral battles.
In the 1st Congressional District, three contenders have emerged: former DPWH Secretary and Congressman Atty. Roger \u201cOging\u201d Mercado (Lakas-CMD), independent candidate Oscar Camus, and Marisa \u201cDundeet\u201d Lerias (Katipunan ng Nagkakaisang Pilipino), daughter of former governor Rosette Y\u00f1iguez Lerias.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the 2nd Congressional District, incumbent Congressman Christopherson \u201cCoco\u201d Yap (Lakas-CMD) faces former Sogod Mayor Imelda \u201cImee\u201d Tan.<\/p>\n\n\n\n


The gubernatorial race is heating up as last-termer Damian \u201cMian\u201d Mercado (Lakas-CMD) faces two newcomers Leo Oliverio, and Amalia Yap, the mother of 2nd District Congressman Christopherson Yap.
For the vice gubernatorial race, Rosa Emilia \u201cMilai\u201d Mercado (Lakas-CMD) is running unopposed, being the sole candidate for the post.<\/p>\n\n\n\n


Many candidates have filed for seats in the provincial board. In the 1st District, the lineup includes Rolito Manalo (Partido Para sa Demokratikong Reporma), Matias \u201cKing\u201d Ruales (Lakas-CMD), Atty. Teopisto \u201cBoy\u201d Rojas (Lakas-CMD), Jonathan \u201cJojo\u201d Maraon (Lakas-CMD), Alan Aroy (Lakas-CMD), and former provincial board member Atty. Josefino Cinco (Independent). The 2nd District candidates include Felixberto Lariba (Independent), Jose Loquinte (Independent), Napoleon Regis (Lakas-CMD), Rolando Bacoy (Lakas-CMD), Jason Calva (Tingog Sinirangan), Virgilio Mortera (Lakas-CMD), and Roque Damian \u201cRoy\u201d Dator (Independent).<\/p>\n\n\n\n


In Maasin City, the mayoral race has drawn attention, with 1st District Congresswoman Luz Verano Mercado (Lakas-CMD), Vice Mayor Maloney Labata Samaco (PDR), and environmentalist Atty. Gerardo Gerong Dator vying for the city\u2019s top position. The vice-mayoral race is between city councilors Effie Lamoste Abiera (NP) and Zaldy Labastida Olita (PDR).<\/p>\n\n\n\n


The race for Maasin City council seats is crowded, with 21 candidates, including Atty. Romeo Rega\u00f1on Geniston (NP), Atty. Rafael Cromwell Tan Gerong (Lakas-CMD), Atty. Margarita Ausa Bantug (Lakas-CMD), Atty. Jezzene Gail Rodriguez Paler (Lakas-CMD), Manuel V. Adobas Enage (NP), Serando Tan Estrada (NPC), Eliseo Bascug Costillas (Lakas-CMD), Ty Tenten Duarte (PDR), Susanita Lanugan Lavi\u00f1a (PDR), Juanito III Kangleon Mendoza (PDR), Isagani Mesa Mercado (Lakas-CMD), Mikhael Verano Mercado (Lakas-CMD), Antonio Orit Resos (PDR), Narciso Othello Servacio Rich (PDR), Luzviminda Telen Rosete (Lakas-CMD), Ruel Piquero Sibi (PDR), Elmedio Bonaoy Tagra (PDR), Ruperto Jr. Ratilla Timkang (Independent), Atty. Leyson Bert Rio (PDR), and Arturo Fruto Siga (Independent).<\/p>\n\n\n\n


As the election draws closer, the political scene in Southern Leyte is shaping up to be highly competitive, with candidates eager to present their platforms and connect with voters. The electorate will play a crucial role in determining the province\u2019s future when they head to the polls in 2025. (AVista, DOrit)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\n
<\/div>

Dahlia A. Orit<\/p>

dahjournalist<\/p><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n

<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The filing of Certificates of Candidacy (COCs) from October 1 to 8, 2024, officially marked the start of the election season for the May 12, 2025 polls. Candidates rushed to the Commission on Elections to formalize their bids for various government positions.In Eastern Visayas, political dynasties dominated the weeklong COC filing, with some clans running […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":231,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-241","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-politics"],"yoast_head":"\nElection fever heats up in Southern Leyte -<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/dahjournalist.com\/?p=241\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Election fever heats up in Southern Leyte -\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"The filing of Certificates of Candidacy (COCs) from October 1 to 8, 2024, officially marked the start of the election season for the May 12, 2025 polls. Candidates rushed to the Commission on Elections to formalize their bids for various government positions.In Eastern Visayas, political dynasties dominated the weeklong COC filing, with some clans running […]\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/dahjournalist.com\/?p=241\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:author\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/dahliaorit\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2024-10-15T05:27:54+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2024-10-15T05:51:07+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/dahjournalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/IMG_5480.jpeg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1240\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"935\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"dahjournalist\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"dahjournalist\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/dahjournalist.com\/?p=241\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/dahjournalist.com\/?p=241\",\"name\":\"Election fever heats up in Southern Leyte -\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/dahjournalist.com\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/dahjournalist.com\/?p=241#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/dahjournalist.com\/?p=241#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/dahjournalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/IMG_5480.jpeg\",\"datePublished\":\"2024-10-15T05:27:54+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2024-10-15T05:51:07+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/dahjournalist.com\/#\/schema\/person\/49b017443807951cf7b3dba7874ba7b2\"},\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/dahjournalist.com\/?p=241#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/dahjournalist.com\/?p=241\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/dahjournalist.com\/?p=241#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/dahjournalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/IMG_5480.jpeg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/dahjournalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/IMG_5480.jpeg\",\"width\":1240,\"height\":935},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/dahjournalist.com\/?p=241#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/dahjournalist.com\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Election fever heats up in Southern Leyte\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/dahjournalist.com\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/dahjournalist.com\/\",\"name\":\"\",\"description\":\"\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/dahjournalist.com\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":\"required name=search_term_string\"}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/dahjournalist.com\/#\/schema\/person\/49b017443807951cf7b3dba7874ba7b2\",\"name\":\"dahjournalist\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/dahjournalist.com\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/7a41af2a9609f77ff34acdee7bc86c30e960bcf20a2c2fd8f254a48c8245ab1c?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/7a41af2a9609f77ff34acdee7bc86c30e960bcf20a2c2fd8f254a48c8245ab1c?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"dahjournalist\"},\"description\":\"News Reporter | Your source of Latest News in Southern Leyte\",\"sameAs\":[\"https:\/\/dahjournalist.com\",\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/dahliaorit\/\"],\"url\":\"https:\/\/dahjournalist.com\/?author=1\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Election fever heats up in Southern Leyte -","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/dahjournalist.com\/?p=241","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Election fever heats up in Southern Leyte -","og_description":"The filing of Certificates of Candidacy (COCs) from October 1 to 8, 2024, officially marked the start of the election season for the May 12, 2025 polls. Candidates rushed to the Commission on Elections to formalize their bids for various government positions.In Eastern Visayas, political dynasties dominated the weeklong COC filing, with some clans running […]","og_url":"https:\/\/dahjournalist.com\/?p=241","article_author":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/dahliaorit\/","article_published_time":"2024-10-15T05:27:54+00:00","article_modified_time":"2024-10-15T05:51:07+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1240,"height":935,"url":"https:\/\/dahjournalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/IMG_5480.jpeg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"dahjournalist","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"dahjournalist","Est. reading time":"3 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/dahjournalist.com\/?p=241","url":"https:\/\/dahjournalist.com\/?p=241","name":"Election fever heats up in Southern Leyte -","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/dahjournalist.com\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/dahjournalist.com\/?p=241#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/dahjournalist.com\/?p=241#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/dahjournalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/IMG_5480.jpeg","datePublished":"2024-10-15T05:27:54+00:00","dateModified":"2024-10-15T05:51:07+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/dahjournalist.com\/#\/schema\/person\/49b017443807951cf7b3dba7874ba7b2"},"breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/dahjournalist.com\/?p=241#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/dahjournalist.com\/?p=241"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/dahjournalist.com\/?p=241#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/dahjournalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/IMG_5480.jpeg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/dahjournalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/IMG_5480.jpeg","width":1240,"height":935},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/dahjournalist.com\/?p=241#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/dahjournalist.com\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Election fever heats up in Southern Leyte"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/dahjournalist.com\/#website","url":"https:\/\/dahjournalist.com\/","name":"","description":"","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/dahjournalist.com\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":"required name=search_term_string"}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/dahjournalist.com\/#\/schema\/person\/49b017443807951cf7b3dba7874ba7b2","name":"dahjournalist","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/dahjournalist.com\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/7a41af2a9609f77ff34acdee7bc86c30e960bcf20a2c2fd8f254a48c8245ab1c?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/7a41af2a9609f77ff34acdee7bc86c30e960bcf20a2c2fd8f254a48c8245ab1c?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"dahjournalist"},"description":"News Reporter | Your source of Latest News in Southern Leyte","sameAs":["https:\/\/dahjournalist.com","https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/dahliaorit\/"],"url":"https:\/\/dahjournalist.com\/?author=1"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dahjournalist.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/241","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dahjournalist.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dahjournalist.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dahjournalist.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dahjournalist.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=241"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/dahjournalist.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/241\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":246,"href":"https:\/\/dahjournalist.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/241\/revisions\/246"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dahjournalist.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/231"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dahjournalist.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=241"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dahjournalist.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=241"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dahjournalist.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=241"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}