They say that a picture is worth a thousand words.
That proved to be true when the final ballot face for the national elections this May was released on Tuesday.
The ballot contains ten presidential aspirants, nine vice presidential bets and 64 senatorial aspirants, as well as 177 party-list groups.
Those running for the highest position of the land are as listed:
- Abella, Ernie
- De Guzman, Leody
- Domagoso, Isko Moreno
- Gonzales, Norberto
- Lacson, Ping
- Mangondato, Faisal
- Marcos, Bongbong
- Montemayor, Jose Jr.
- Pacquiao, Manny Pacman
- Robredo, Leni
On the other hand, those gunning for the vice presidency are as follows:
- Atienza, Lito
- Bello, Walden
- David, Rizalito
- Duterte, Sara
- Lopez, Manny SD
- Ong, Doc Willie
- Pangilinan, Kiko
- Serapio, Carlos
- Sotto, Vicente Tito
The names of the presidential, vice presidential and senatorial bets are all listed in alphabetical order.
The ballot face templates quickly gained traction on local Twitter where some Filipinos shared their own observations about the sheets listing individuals and groups aspiring to serve the country.
A Twitter user quipped that according to the ballot, “the last man standing is a woman.”
It was a reference to Robredo, who is listed as the last presidential candidate based on the alphabetical arrangement of their surnames.
Another online user noticed that Sen. Richard Gordon used the name “Wow Dick” to refer to himself.
“Dick” is the lawmaker’s nickname.
He also conceptualized the “WOW Philippines” tourism campaign when he was a tourism secretary under the Arroyo administration.
Meanwhile, a business editor of a news organization noticed that Marcos’ ballot number was the same as his father’s reported favorite or lucky number.
Former dictator Ferdinand Marcos Sr. was believed to favor the number seven.
“How the *** did BBM end up as candidate number 7, his dad’s ‘lucky’ number?!” editor Dax Lucas wrote.
A different Twitter user noticed that a Francis Leo Marcos was included in the final ballot face’s senatorial candidates.
“Seryoso ba? Francis Leo Marcos for senator?? (Utang) na loob,” he commented.
Francis Leo, also known as Norman Mangusin, has repeatedly claimed of being related to the famous political family.
Two years ago, he was arrested for reportedly distributing unauthorized eyeglasses in Baguio City.
The national and local elections will be held on May 9.
Filipinos will be electing their next leader who will steer the pandemic-stricken nation under a new administration.