Valencia Mayor Kat Lim, the youngest municipal chief executive in the province, has officially confirmed that she will seek a seat in Congress in the 2022 elections through the province’s third district.
“Yes, last January 28 pa ko ni declare,” Lim said in a text message sent to the Chronicle on Thursday.
The 31-year-old mayor said strong support from village leaders in the district particularly Valencia prompted her to run for Congress.
“Ang nakadasig nako kay ang kusog kaayo nga suporta sa mga tao ug lideres sa tersero distrito labi na sa taga Valencia,” said Lim who ran unopposed in the 2019 polls.
Lim’s name first emerged as a possible congressional candidate in late 2020 when unconfirmed reports surfaced indicating that Governor Arthur Yap had tapped her to run under his slate during the 2022 Presidential Elections.
With the decision, the last-term mayor has set herself up on a collision course with Third District Rep. Alexie Tutor who is on her first term.
Lim acknowledged Tutor’s popularity in the district but believes she has what it takes to unseat the incumbent lawmaker.
“Dli jud nuon ika limod nga kusog si Cong Alexie. Pero dili man pod siguro ika limod nga kusgan pod ta. Tao nalang ang mag igo pohon,” said Lim.
Meanwhile, other individuals have also surfaced as possible candidates for the congressional seat including former Carmen Mayor Che Toribio-delos Reyes, who ran and lost to Tutor in 2019, and Regor Cadorniga, an engineer.
Both however have yet to confirm their intentions to run for Congress.