MANILA (UPDATED) - Aksyon Demokratiko standard-bearer Isko Moreno Domagoso on Monday cast his ballot in a public school in Tondo, concluding his months-long campaign in vying for the presidency.

Domagoso lined up in his polling precinct at the Magat Salamat Elementary School at 11:02 a.m. and completed the voting process in less than 15 minutes.

Aksyon Demokratiko presidential candidate @IskoMoreno Domagoso completed the voting process in less than 15 minutes.

He queued at his polling precinct at 11:02 am, and inserted his ballot into the VCM at 11:16 am pic.twitter.com/z4eI2oxi1o

— Kat Domingo (@_katrinadomingo) May 9, 2022

Amid reports of glitches in vote counting machines (VCM), long lines, and other difficulties in voting, Domagoso urged Filipinos not to miss their chance to cast their ballots.

"Mga kababayan, tiyagain natin tutal isang beses lang ito sa 6 na taon," he said.

"Ito ay magandang gawain sa demokrasya kaya kunin natin ang pagkakataon na ito, huwag natin sasayang yung pagkakataon na makapamili ng tunay na leader na makapagbibigay ng tunay na solusyon at magkakaroon ng boses ang ordinaryong pamilyang Pilipino," he said.

Filipinos watching coverage of the elections, however, noted that Domagoso did not wear a mask while voting, which is a violation of the pandemic protocols set by the Commission on Elections.

Before trooping to his polling precinct, Domagoso prayed at the Sto. Niño Parish in Tondo, where he used to hear Sunday mass when his mother was still alive.

The presidential aspirant, however, refused to share his prayers, saying it was a private conversation with God.

"[I'm] excited... nothing to worry [about]," he told reporters.

"Ipinagpapsa-Diyos ko na lahat kasi nagawa na naman natin ang lahat ng dapat na magawa. We lift everything to God. We did our best and let God do the rest."

ISKO'S PATH

Domagoso first announced his plan to run for president in September 22 last year in Tondo, an impoverished district in Manila where he started both his life as a young scavenger, and his journey as a politician.

With the capital city as his “prototype”, Domagoso launched his presidential bid with the promise to construct public schools and hospitals, and improve the delivery of basic services across the country, just as he did in first first term as mayor of Manila.

In his public sorties and speeches in the past 6 months, the actor-turned-politician would intersperse anecdotes of his poor beginnings with his achievements in his 2-decade political career to present a narrative he could steer the Philippines away from poverty just as he did to himself.

“Instead na kaawaan ko ang sarili ko, eh di pinagbuti ko,” he said in one of his iconic TV advertisements.

“Keep on trying, wala namang mawawala sa inyo.”

But as Domagoso soldiered on in trying to become the Philippines’ 17th president, he lost a key ally in veteran aide Cesar Chavez, his chief-of-staff who resigned about a week after the Manila mayor filed his certificate of candidacy for president.

• Isko Moreno's chief of staff exits team ahead of 2022 elections

Chavez reportedly had to deal with health and family matters, but several sources told ABS-CBN News that his resignation was linked to Domagoso’s outbursts against Vice President Leni Robredo.

A week before Chavez’s resignation, Domagoso called Robredo a 'fake leader with a fake color' after the Vice President’s supporters egged him to withdraw from the presidential race to give way to the Liberal Party chairperson.

• Isko Moreno calls Robredo 'fake leader with fake color' for running as independent bet in 2022 presidential race

Chavez’s resignation was the first of many departures from Domagoso’s camp, as the Aksyon Demokratiko standard bearer eventually peppered his speeches with jabs against Robredo and her “condescending” supporters.

The peak of Domagoso’s tirades against Robredo happened on April 17 during an Easter Sunday press conference in Makati where he called on the presidential survey second placer to withdraw from the race.

• 'Leni, withdraw': Isko calls on Robredo to pull out of 2022 presidential race

Despite the successive announcement of several groups that they would shift from Domagoso to Robredo’s camp, the Manila mayor continued to enjoy the loyalty of his long-time fans.

In Nueva Ecija, a balikbayan from the United States put up a roadside eatery dedicated entirely to boost Domagoso’s presidential bid among ordinary citizens.

• Isko supporter opens 'Iskorinderia' to boost Manila Mayor's presidential bid

In Payatas, the rain-drenched Domagoso removed his blue long sleeves shirt and threw it to a squealing crowd.

In Bacolod, a small business owner spent 2 weeks crafting a rhinestone portrait of Domagoso. The framed artwork supposedly cost P15,000.

Domagoso said it is the warm reception of the public that kept him going despite low rankings in pre-election surveys.

In Pulse Asia’s April pre-election poll - the last survey from the firm before the May 9 elections - only 4 percent of respondents said they would vote for Domagoso for president.

ISKO THANKS MEDIA

After casting his ballot, Domagoso granted an interview where he thanked journalists and vloggers alike for covering his campaign trail.

"Maraming salamat sa inyo dahil one way or another nakapagbigay din kayo sa akin ng pagkakataon na maipahatid yung aming mga saloobin, damdamin, pananaw o mga bagay bilang kandidato," he said.

"You're part of my journey and I hope someday you will be the new Malacañang press corps," he said, before laughing.

Domagoso returned to the Manila City Hall to finish paper work and is expected to join his family in the afternoon.

Bookmark the ABS-CBN News Halalan results page to see the partial unofficial tally of election returns.

For other updates, visit ABS-CBN News' live blog here.

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