SULONG GUGMA ILOILO: Baronda-led slate to file COCs today

With overwhelming support from the Ilonggo electorate as confirmed by the latest Random Access Consultants, Inc. (RACI) survey, House Deputy Majority Leader and Iloilo City Rep. Julienne “Jam-Jam” Baronda is set to file her Certificate of Candidacy (COC) today along with a full slate of returning and new candidates for the city legislature.

Baronda enjoys a commanding 62% of the Ilonggo electorates in the September 2024 RACI survey, significantly ahead of Raisa Treñas-Chu’s 37.8%. She scored 57.3% over Mayor Jerry Treñas’s 42.5%.

Former city councilors Lady Julie Grace “Love” Baronda, Sheen Marie Mabilog, and R. Leone “Boots” Gerochi will spearhead the councilor slate.

New faces entering the race for the Sangguniang Panlungsod include Atty. Dan Cartagena, Atty. Kesha Pesina-Tupas, Dr. Graceson “Doc Guiling” Dela Llana, Dr. Evony “Doc Von” Deveza, Pastor Stanley “Big Bro” Flores, Peter Emil V. Oñate II, and Gene Manuel “GM” Ariete Ramos.

Independent candidates Salvador “Jun” Capulot, Jr.  and Mor Espinosa have also been adopted by the team.

Cartagena, a former punong barangay and law practitioner, has been a vocal advocate for social justice and accountability. Pesina-Tupas is the daughter of former City Councilor Antonio Pesina and is also a practicing lawyer.

Dela Llana, a dental health practitioner and the son of former Vice Mayor Guillermo “Guiling” Dela Llana, continues his family’s legacy of public service. Deveza is a psychiatrist and mental health advocate, while Flores is a Christian pastor who formerly worked in Congress with Sen. Joel Villanueva and the CIBAC party-list.

Oñate is a banker and a past president of the Junior Chamber International (JCI) Iloilo, or the Jaycees. Capulot, a popular radio and online broadcaster, brings with him a substantial social media following. Espinosa belongs to the Espinosa political clan.

Baronda pledges to continue her H.O.P.E. advocacies, focusing on Health, Housing, Jobs, OFW Welfare, Peace and Order, Disaster Preparedness, Education, and Environmental Regeneration to improve key services and opportunities for Ilonggos.

She also aims to push major infrastructure projects, including the Metro Iloilo Special Economic Zone, North and South Iloilo Expressways, Iloilo City Coastal Seawall, Iloilo Sports Center, Fish Port Redevelopment, and the Comprehensive Flood Control System, to address transportation, flooding, and boost economic growth, among others.