Accordingly, voters will elect more than 18,000 government positions at all levels out of a total of 43,500 candidates. The election is seen as a referendum on President Rodrigo Duterte’s credibility, as well as a test for potential presidential candidates in the 2022 presidential election.
* Just before the election, at least three explosions rocked the city of Cotabato and the province of Maguindanao in the south of the Philippines. Philippine police confirmed that the first explosion occurred outside the city hall in Cotabato on the night of May 12. The other two explosions happened in Datu Odin Sinsuat, Maguindanao, on the morning of May 13. Security forces were deployed to ensure the safety of the election.
