In our nine January, February and March 1 – 7, ‘Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow!’ columns, we had a hard time recalling the many important historical events that have occurred in the first quarter of the year.
As in the case of our December 2019 – January 2020 columns on the ‘First Quarter Storm!’ of 1970, we were late with our column on ‘Leading Up to People Power!’ and were no longer able to write about the actual events of the four days of the ‘EDSA People Power Revolution!’ We will try better next year!
Meanwhile, our next simultaneous national and local elections will be held on Monday, May 9, 2022.
That means that the respective campaign periods will start on February 8 and end on May 7, for national positions elected at large – President, Vice President and twelve Senators.
And March 25 to May 7 for Congressmen (including Party Lists) and Local Officials – Governors, Vice Governors and Board Members and Mayors, Vice Mayors and Councilors. Campaigning is prohibited on April 14 & 15 (Holy Thursday and Good Friday), May 8 (eve of election day) until the counting is finished.
The deadline for the registration of party list groups, coalitions and organizations is on March 31, 2021 and political parties on April 30, 2021.
The filing of certificates of candidacy as well as of nomination and of acceptance, from President down to Councilor are from October 1 to 8.
Party List groups can also file their list of nominees during this period. The tentative list of candidates will be posted on October 29, 2021, while the final nominees will be known by November 30, 2021.
The election period will be from January 9 to June 8, 2022.
However, substitution of candidates who are nominees of political parties is allowed until December.
This, was the case with the certificate of candidacy of PDP- Laban nominee Martin Dino (now DILG Undersecretary for Barangay Affairs) for President or Mayor in Pasay City, which was used for and by then Davao City Mayor and PDP-Laban replacement nominee Rodrigo ‘DU30’ Duterte y Roa to be a candidate for President of the Philippines.
DU30’s substitution was not disallowed but was instead accepted because of the stupidity of the PNoy administration.
They did not believe then that DU30 was a credible and strong candidate.
Their candidate was Manuel ‘MAR’ Roxas y Araneta. MAR had always trailed Vice President Jejomar ‘Jojo’ Binay y Cabauatan and Senator Grace Poe y Roces in the surveys.
They believed that letting DU30 run, would split the vote of the numerous non – Administration Presidential candidates – Grace Poe, Jojo Binay and Senator Miriam Santiago y Defensor.
However, DU30 was so popular that he generated a bandwagon that split Poe, MAR and Binay’s votes instead in his favor.