15 presidential, 9 VP aspirants make it to Comelec's new tentative list

The Commission on Elections (Comelec) has trimmed down the tentative list of aspirants to 15 presidential and nine vice presidential bets.

The Certified List of Candidates posted by the poll body on Friday showed that the presidential aspirants was cut from 97, based on the initial list posted on October 29, to 15.

The tentative list of presidential aspirants includes (in alphabetical order):

• Abella, Ernie
• Andes, Hilario
• Arcega, Gerald
• De Guzman, Leody
• Domagoso, Isko Moreno
• Gonzales, Norberto
• Lacson, Ping
• Lihaylihay, Danilo
• Mangondato, Faisal
• Marcos, Bongbong
• Marcos, Maria Aurora
• Montemayor, Jose Jr.
• Niez, Edgar
• Pacquiao, Manny Pacman
• Robredo, Leni

One of the presidential hopefuls no longer on the list is Antonio Parlade Jr., a retired military official who became controversial for "red-tagging" certain individuals.

Parlade, a former spokesperson of the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC), filed his certificate of candidacy for president under Katipunan ng Demokratikong Pilipino (KDP) via substitution route on November 13.   

"It's a tentative list, so it's a tentative setback. We will wait for [the] Comelec's final list," Parlade said in reaction to the development. 

"What we know is that KDP's issue on authorized signatures, which was complied with before the deadline, is a non-issue at all. We are confident that the Comelec en banc will rule on the matter judiciously."

Meanwhile, the tentative list of vice presidential aspirants was trimmed from 28 to nine. It includes (in alphabetical order):

• Atienza, Lito
• Bello, Walden
• David, Rizalito
• Duterte, Sara
• Lopez, Manny SD
• Ong, Doc Willie
• Pangilinan, Kiko
• Serapio, Carlos
• Sotto, Vicente

The poll body also released a tentative list of 70 senatorial aspirants , candidates in the local level, and accredited party-list groups. 

According to the Comelec, the tentative lists of aspirants or candidates for the May 9, 2022 national and local elections is based on the initial evaluation of the Certificates of Nomination, Certificates of Candidacy and Certificates of Nomination and Acceptance.

“Consequently, the contents of the list, particularly the names of the aspirants/candidates, political parties, as well as the name to appear on the ballot are subject to change as a result of any further evaluation and/or resolution of the Commission En Banc in relation thereto,” the poll body said.

Only at the start of the campaign period, according to Comelec spokesperson James Jimenez, do aspirants become official candidates.

“[The list is] not yet final. Names will still be stricken off the list as the judgment in their respective cases achieve finality. In any case, aspirants become 'official candidates' only at the start of the campaign period,” he said in a message to reporters. 

Candidates for president, vice president, senator, and party-list groups will campaign from February 8 to May 7, 2022, while candidates for members of the House of Representatives, regional, provincial, city, and municipal officials will campaign from March 25 to May 7, 2022. —KBK/VBL, GMA News