The new congressmen and re-elected governor and vice governors of Tarlac. (Left to right) Barangay Captain and Councilor Noel “Bong” Rivera of the 3rd district, Victoria town Mayor Christian Yap, Jaime Cojuangco, Gov. Susan Yap, and Vice Gov. Carlito David. (Photo from the Facebook page of Jaime Cojuangco)
MABALACAT CITY, Pampanga––All the three congressmen proclaimed winners in the May 9 elections in Tarlac are newcomers, including the son of the late Rep. Charlie Cojuangco.
The late congressman’s name, which was on the Commission on Elections’ official ballot for Tarlac’s first district, garnered 191,827 votes against rival Joseph Ramac’s only 11,127. The ballots were printed before Charlie’s demise, who suffered from a brain aneurysm on Oct. 26 last year and died on Feb. 22.
The winning votes were credited to Jaime Cojuangco, Charlie’s son, who substituted for his father in Tarlac’s first congressional district race. The substitution was filed on Feb. 24 at the Comelec Tarlac field office and was promptly approved.
During the proclamation of winning provincial candidates at the Tarlac’s legislative building on Tuesday, all the winning candidates were considered new faces in local politics.
Joining Jaime during the proclamation were reelected Gov. Susan Yap’s eldest son Christian, mayor of Victoria town; and Noel “Bong” Rivera, president of the Association of Barangay Captains and councilor of Concepcion town.
The younger Yap won in Tarlac’s second district congressional contest, with 208,195 votes, defeating Faustino Galang II, who obtained 45,668 votes.
Rivera won the third district congressional race, beating the mayor of his town, Andres Lacson, and Bamban town mayor Jose Antonio Feliciano.
The new faces in Tarlac’s congressional seats. (Left to right) Barangay Captain and Councilor Noel “Bong” Rivera of the 3rd district, Victoria Mayor Christian Yap, and Jaime Cojuangco. (Photo from the Facebook page of Jaime Cojuangco)
Rivera garnered 112,620 votes, Lacson 82,583, and Feliciano 38,331.
Winning a congressional seat in the first district of Tarlac seemed like a walk in the park for Jaime Cojuangco.
His father’s family still commands followers in Tarlac, particularly in the first district comprising Anao, Camiling, Gerona, Moncada, Paniqui, Pura, Ramos, San Clemente, and Santa Ignacia, the bailiwick of his late grandfather Eduardo “Danding” Cojuangco, founder of the Nationalist People’s Coalition (NPC).
Christian Yap also did not find it difficult to take over his uncle Rep. Victor Yap’s congressional seat. His grandfather, the late Ambassador and Gov. Jose “Aping” Yap, was a close ally of Danding Cojuangco and was never defeated in Tarlac politics.
The NPC leaders’ influence was also a plus factor for Rivera, the barangay captain of San Vicente village in the agricultural town of Concepcion. He defeated two mayors to become the congressman of the district held by members of the Aquino and Lapus families until 2013, when former Concepcion Mayor Noel Villanueva, also a member of the NPC, defeated Jeci Lapus and Herminio Aquino in the congressional race.