Negros Occidental 6th district representative Mercedes Alvarez joined the House of Representatives’ top leadership after being elected deputy speaker during the chamber’s plenary session on Monday, August 3, giving the province a stronger voice in one of Congress’ highest decision-making bodies.
Alvarez, who previously served as vice chairperson of the Committee on Appropriations, replaced Ilocos Sur representative Kristine Singson-Meehan as deputy speaker in the latest round of leadership changes in the chamber.
Her elevation places her among the officials tasked with helping preside over House sessions and supporting Speaker Faustino “Bojie” Dy III in steering the chamber’s legislative agenda.
Alvarez became the fifth deputy speaker elected under Dy, who assumed the House’s top post in September 2025.
The House leadership now includes senior deputy speaker Ferdinand Hernandez of South Cotabato and deputy speakers Albee Benitez of Bacolod City, Duke Frasco of Cebu, Maria Rachel Arenas of Pangasinan, Janette Garin of Iloilo, Yasser Alonto Balindong of Lanao del Sur, Ronaldo Puno of Antipolo City, David “Jay-Jay” Suarez of Quezon, Ferjenel Biron of Iloilo, Paolo Ortega V of La Union, Jay Khonghun of Zambales, Raymond Democrito Mendoza of the TUCP Party-list, and Alvarez.
The House also continued its leadership reorganization by appointing four new assistant majority leaders and naming new chairpersons to nine standing committees.
Among them, Negros Occidental representative Julio Ledesma IV was designated chairperson of the Committee on Economic Affairs, while Leyte Representative Anna Victoria Veloso-Tuazon was named chair of the Committee on Climate Change, Cavite representative Aniela Bianca Tolentino for Ecology, and Aklan representative Jesus Marquez for Science and Technology.
The leadership reshuffle, which began on July 30, continued through the August 3 plenary session as the House reorganized key positions during the second regular session of the 20th Congress.*
Reymund Titong is a Filipino journalist steadily building his voice in the field of news reporting, driven by a commitment to tell meaningful and relevant stories.
He serves as a correspondent for Rappler, contributes to Negros Daily Bulletin, and maintains a blog on Medium.