The Old Guard and the Young Turks: The Topsy-Turvy Story of the 2022 National and Local Elections

Opinion Piece

Chapter I: The Old Guard

As the canvassing is almost concluding and proclamations are being prepared by the Commission on Elections, we can now say that the 2022 National and Local Elections are now coming to a close. Before the tides go out and the waves start to stop crashing, here’s an attempt at a concise analysis of this year’s elections–not an attempt at patronizing any political candidate or party, adhering to the principle that media being the fourth estate should be the watchdog of the government and political processes including elections.

Let us start with the National Elections. It is really evident that the campaign period and elections this year will go down as one of the most impassioned. Be it the ones who vied for the highest position of the land or those who aspired to become the nation’s new breed of solons, we can conclude one thing: This election was not merely about the candidates but a polarizing conflict of principles—two sides of history, or at least, perspectives of history that have divided the country ever since the EDSA People Power Revolution ousted the Dictator in 1986.

There were many notable personalities who ran for the Presidential seat. Manny Pacquiao, Panfilo Lacson, and Isko Moreno Domagoso being some of the popular candidates. But we could not really ignore that Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. with his running mate Sara Duterte would face off toe-to-toe with Leni Robredo and her candidate for VP, Kiko Pangilinan as frontrunners of the election. Many political analysts foresaw the elections to be a very close fight.

It was not merely an election of candidates but also a selection of adherence to movements, as BBM-Sara and Leni-Kiko created two different movements. Each movement molded into a kind of cult of personality wherein their respective candidates became embodiments of certain principles. This could be seen in the packed areas and concert halls. Each side was considered to be a formidable opponent of the other.

But it all boiled down to Election Day. One tandem coming out with more votes than the other, obviously. And this is by a substantial margin. It seemed that most of our countrymen preferred BBM-Sara for a variety of reasons. We can say that people wanted continuity of the previous administration's policies and others, especially Marcos Loyalists, who aimed for their perceived redemption, which is the rewriting of what some seem to be a “distorted” version of history and the revitalization of the Marcos family’s legacy in Philippine politics.

Likewise, we cannot discount the overall efforts of the Leni-Kiko camp. Their movement was one of sheer volunteerism. It was almost like a rehash of the EDSA People Power, a bold statement for one who wasn’t even alive at the time. People of different walks of life took to the streets and showed support for a movement that moved millions who were inspired by a branding that promoted moral uprightness and democratic principles.

But looking at the reality as shown in the latest and unofficial results, we can see that a movement can start a revolution but may also have the tendency to lose an election. BBM-Sara continue to lead and are bound to win the two top seats in the country. More people voted for this tandem maybe because they wanted familiar faces in the government. Filipinos tend to associate with people who are familiar to them. That is why we see an action star, Robin Padilla leading the senatorial race. Coincidentally, this is also the reason why the Leni-Kiko camp had and accepted the services of a plethora of celebrities and musical talents. This could all be attributed to the Filipinos’ preference for familiarity.

Another reason is that this year’s election was one that’s almost mainly rooted in social media promotion and engagement. Trolls proliferated lately which also contributed to the never-ending conflict between the green-red BBM-Sara camp and the pink associated with Leni-Kiko. Social media were also used to push their respective narratives. But looking at the recent election results, one narrative prevailed over the other. The narrative of unity, familiarity, and continuity seemed to be more than enough for BBM and Sara to win.

On the flip side, we cannot discount the narrative presented by Leni-Kiko. The movement presented a narrative of an honest government, one that would correct the social wrongs and injustices that were said to have proliferated during the previous administration. A narrative of love and inclusivity, one in which many millennials, armed with their respective gadgets, rallied around to promote. It also promoted not allowing for a return of a Marcos to power reinforced by the atrocities and events that happened during Martial Law.

But I guess these ideals and principles did not catch the hearts and minds of most of the common folk or “Juan De la Cruz” as they preferred to have another populist, strongman government that we have grown so familiar with with the Duterte administration. Filipinos, being the ultimate lovers of gossip, always love a story and thus concludes that this was not merely an election, but a battle of narratives.

Chapter II: The Young Turks

In the previous chapter, we talked about the element of familiarity and how Filipinos are fixated on familiar names and faces. Although the same may be somewhat true with the local elections, we can really see that some localities have seen some new faces in the latest elections.

The elections in General Santos City are no exception. Brigada, Inc. CEO Elmer V. Catulpos threw his hat in the ring for the mayoralty race. But sadly, he lost to a new face out of barangay politics, Lorelie Pacquiao. In addition, a lot of new candidates ran for a seat in the city council, one being MSU College of Law-Gensan’s very own, Atty. Froebel Kan Balleque. Atty. Kan won a seat in the city council along with other familiar candidates.

The same trend seemed to be evident in Sarangani Province. Bong Aquia and Gladden S. Lim, novices to local politics, vied for the spot but lost to the very influential Ruel D. Pacquiao by a landslide for the gubernatorial seat. In municipal politics, George Falgui, a new face in Kiamba politics defeated the incumbent mayor Danny Martinez. In Glan, Eugene Alzate ran for mayor but lost to a member of the long-established Yap family.

Chapter III: What Now?

Elections in the Philippines have always been dramatic. We had experienced plenty of election frauds and election-related violence all over the country. Events that turn an ideally peaceful political process into a bloody grudge match. Putting this point aside, what we can extract from our latest experience is that the elections were defined by a dichotomy of principles and narratives, the tide of victory tilting to the one most preferred by the masses. Furthermore, the recent polls were an oxymoron, with a mix of the same old politicians and familiar personalities gaining seats in the government and new individuals who attempted to play their hand in the political arena. Therefore, our political environment may be described as a conglomeration of the Old Guard and the Young Turks.