304 candidates file COC in first 3 days

CEBU, Philippines — Over 300 aspiring candidates in Central Visayas for the 2025 midterm election filed their Certificates of Candidacy (COC) for various positions in the first three days of the registration process.

According to the data released by the Commission on Elections (COMELEC)-7, which opened its doors for COC filing, a total of 304 individuals have submitted their COCs from October 1 to October 3, 2024. Among these aspirants, at least 227 are male and 77 are female.

Of the number, 120 are from Cebu while 184 from Bohol province. This number does not include Siquijor and Negros Oriental, which are now part of Region 18 or the Negros Island Region (NIR).

Seven had filed their COCs for House of Representative seats; one for governor; two for vice governor; 14 for Provincial Board member; 31 for mayor; 25 for vice mayor; and 224 for Sangguniang Panlungsod member.

According to COMELEC-7 regional director, Atty. Francisco Pobe, the first three days of the filing of candidacy was not only smooth but also “pleasant.”

Although the preliminary numbers are still few, Pobe anticipates that, just like the previous elections, bulk filing will be done from October 6,7 and 8.

Right after the filing of COCs, the electoral board will accumulate all the aspirants’ certificates and will then proceed to the accreditation process.

“We will proceed to Manila (together with) the respective provincial supervisors and city Comelec officers belonging to HUCs to deliver personally the COCs filed for purposes of accreditation for them as the official candidates running for offices,” said Pobe.

NEW VOTERS AND REGISTERED VOTERS

Following the recent regional adjustments in June 2024, where Siquijor and Negros became part of newly created regions of NIR, the voter registration process in Central Visayas has seen notable shifts.

During the 2023 Barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan Elections (BSKE), Central Visayas with Siquijor and Negros had a total of 7.3 million registered voters.

Negros Oriental contributed around 1.2 million voters while Siquijor had 107,000 voters.

As a result of their transition to the newly-created region, Central Visayas has seen a reduction of around 1.3 million voters wherein Cebu now holds 5.9 millions voters and Bohol has 1.3 million voters.

But even with this decreased figure, Pobe said that while the complete statistical breakdown has yet to be finalized, Cebu still holds the majority of the region's voting power.

Meanwhile, Comelec is set to hold an Election Registration Board (ERB) wherein it will approve or disapprove the new applications on October 18, making the official voter statistics in the region.

The ongoing voter registration, which began this year in February and ended on September 30, has added significant numbers, specifically in Bohol with 69,418 new voters, and Cebu with 318,165 new voters.