In some ways the May polls is a repetition of the old: a battle among children of the elite political clans and the new rich who pandered their rags-to-riches story to appeal to the votes of the poor majority. For a nation lacking in historical values, it will take more than just new machines to change the entire dynamics of Philippine elections. An essay by CRISELDA YABES

The outcome of the 2010 elections will probably redraw the Philippine political map.

A landslide win by Noynoy Aquino will probably insulate him from being cheated, but closer contests, including the vice presidential race, may tempt protagonists to resort to time-tested methods. How does one cheat after the polls close? Roberto Verzola counts the ways.

New technology was supposed to speed up the May 10 elections. But technical breakdowns, along with the general unfamiliarity with the new system, actually slowed down the voting in many areas of the country. One of the most common problems was voting machines that malfunctioned. An analysis of the voting by Roberto Verzola.

Teodoro's ill-fated support for former Chief Justice Davide's impeachment foreshadowed other political blunders that reveal what could be a shortage of street smarts in someone reputed to be the most intellectual among the presidential candidates.

If pre-elections surveys are to be believed, Senator Noynoy Aquino currently stands as the man most likely to become the 15th president of the Philippines. The 50-year old scion of an influential Tarlac clan has drawn from the legacy of his famous parents to lead a “people's campaign” that promises a righteous path towards positive change in a country reeling from numerous political and economic scandals.

From his humble beginnings in Tondo, Senator Manny Villar Jr. has gained enough material wealth to make it to Forbes' list of richest men. Allegations of influence-peddling and unsavory business practices have hounded his campaign, however, making his well-funded bid to win the country's highest elective position a possibly tenuous proposition.

From the kickoff rallies to the miting de avance, GMANews.TV reporters followed the campaigns of the nine contenders for the presidency in the May 10 polls. The candidates” profiles featured here provide a close-up view of the people who are seeking the electorate”s nod. If you”re an undecided voter, read this.

Gilbert Teodoro found himself alone at the height of typhoon Ondoy. No one was around when he got to his office at the Department of National Defense inside Camp Aguinaldo, after taking the MRT train and wading through the flood. Portrait of the candidate as a crisis manager by Criselda Yabes.

What makes presidential aspirant Richard Gordon different from his eight rivals? The Bagumbayan standard-bearer encapsulates everything in two words: track record. Gordon fancies himself as a transformational leader who will instill a culture of discipline in the country, but many view his leadership style as dictatorial, and many voters were turned off by his perceived arrogance during the campaign.

Manny Villar's main campaign narrative has been that he grew up dirt-poor. But a GMANews.TV investigation into his claims shows that his father, as a government official, was earning up to five times the average individual income at the time. And Villar's mother was making even more as one of the most enterprising Divisoria fish dealers in the 1960s.

Blaring horns that laugh and wail, family trees inscribed on the ceiling, hanging rosaries, magically expanding passenger capacity, colorful signs aimed at getting the passenger to pay – the list of the jeepney's charms goes on. But the king of Pinoy transport just got even cooler with a new project that uses them as vehicles for spreading poetry to the masses.

For this year's Tour of the Fireflies, artist Toym Imao jazzed up a second-hand, 1969 National “Sensor” bike from Japan as his “homage to the era that is associated with over-accessorization.” The result: a fun bike for the much-awaited annual environmental event that takes cyclists on a 40-kilometer spin around Metro Manila and helps promote sustainable lifestyles.

In March, the 24-hour convenience store 7-Eleven launched an informal poll for the presidential candidates running in the May 2010 elections using their in-house drink cup Gulp. In the United States, the winners in the three 7-Elections promotions so far have emerged victorious in the actual polls. Will the same thing happen in the Philippines?

In the violent world of Abra politics, Bangued-based journalist Artha Kira Paredes offers a glimpse of how her town's mayoral candidates conduct their campaign, with one of them using army-type trucks that his family owns and which are often mistaken for military vehicles. The use of such vehicles is supposed to be an election offense.

While the Philippines is still known for having the freest press in Asia, the newest medium of expression – the Internet – is no longer immune from attempts to regulate and control it.

As the campaign heats up out in the hustings, so too are temperatures in cyberspace, with candidates and their handlers coaxing, cajoling, co-opting, and — some say — compromising members of the online community in order to get the attention and support of the country”s 24 million Internet users.

Crisostomo Aquino or Cris, as he is commonly called, is the perennial flag-bearer in Pacquiao fights. He also designs the shirts worn by members of Team Pacquiao.

Part of Pacquiao”s mythic status stems from his ability to defy the odds. Through hard work and an impeccable work ethic, he has become a boxing demigod, a feat that is all the more inspiring because he started out with so much less. The only thing deadlier than Pacquiao”s punches is his charisma, yet through it all, one thing has remained constant — his unswerving faith.

His stature on the world stage may very well qualify Manny Pacquiao as pang-mundong kamao, a lofty but not altogether an impossible a goal, seeing how well-received he is internationally. The number of teams and subteams that have latched on to the Pacquiao bandwagon is mind-boggling, a measure of how much a national treasure he has become.