By Raymund Antonio Otso Diretso candidates lack support from local officials in next month’s elections, but they found themselves with an army of celebrity supporters to fill the void. Human rights lawyer Chel Diokno appreciated on Tuesday what he called “CHELebrity” who endorsed him for senator in the May 13 polls, saying their support will boost his awareness rating. “Malaki ang pasasalamat ko sa lahat ng mga celebrity na nag-endorse sakin either directly or indirectly,” Diokno told reporters in Cagayan de Oro. Diokno, whose surveys numbers have been improving during the campaign period, has been receiving an outpouring of support from celebrities, among them were Bianca Gonzalez, Enchong Dee, and Dingdong Dantes. Naming the others, he also mentioned Pepe Herrera, Medwin Marfil of True Faith, Jaime Fabregas, Bituin Escalante, Ebe Dancel, Bullet Dumas, and Johnoy Danao of 3D, Janine Gutierrez, Cookie Chua, Bayang Barrios, and Noel Cabangon. Just recently, Dantes was seen putting up a campaign poster for Diokno outside his home in a photo shared by his son and filmmaker Pepe Diokno on social media. “Nakakagulat! Di pa ako nakakaalis, kinabit mo na ang @ChelDiokno poster sa bahay mo! Salamat, @iamdongdantes! Di ko napigilang mag-paparazzi shot,” Pepe wrote on Twitter. “Salamat din at ikaw pa mismo ang nagdala ng poster na hiningi ko. Gustung-gusto talaga namin sa bahay na ang mga katulad ni erpats mong si @ChelDiokno ang mapasok sa Senado,” Dingdong replied. On the campaign trail, former solicitor general Florin Hilbay has been accompanied by singer-actress Agot Isidro to court voters. Herrera endorsed Diokno earlier this week, even sharing a story on social media about his parents who were both imprisoned during martial law. Diokno’s father, the late Senator Jose Diokno, defended Herrera’s father in court. “These people do not have millions of money for campaigning. They help those who are in need without asking for money. And they are not Politicians. Chel Diokno, just like his father is not a Politician. He is a Public Servant. Napakalaki po ng pagkakaiba nun,” Herrera wrote. “I got your back sir @cheldiokno. I’ll be your portable and mobile human poster wherever I go,” he added. The human rights lawyer said endorsements will go a long way to boost his awareness rating among voters in the hopes to gain new “fans” from his celebrity endorsers. “Palagay ko makakatulong yan sa awareness dahil marami rin silang following, at maaaring pag malaman din ng mga fans nila ay maging fan din nila ako,” Diokno said.