(3) Parties are notoriously weak in the Philippines. The typical pattem of election campaigning involves a local machine, usually centered around a mayor or mayoral candidate. They generally forge alliances with candidates at the provincial and/or national level. These higher-level candidates provide their local allies with resources such as cash, campaign material and other benefits. In return, the local candidates deploy their mobilising apparatus to help the campaigns of their higher- level partners. Candidates at all levels need local machines to campaign door-to-door and to provide voters with the incentives that fuel turnout. Sometimes, these alliances follow party lines, sometimes they cut across them. The core of these relationships are often extended family or other personal ties. Even these alliances, however, are not entirely reliable, especially for higher-level candidates. What counts most for the people working on the ground is their local team. One campaign manager in southern Luzon explain "We tell the voters to focus on the mayor and the councillors. still have the energy to go to the governor please vote for the governor if you still have the energy to vote for congress please vote for the congressman, then if you still have the energy to vote for the president, do so. But focus first on the mayor and the councillors, that's the marching order