by Ken Quintanilla

Guam - With decades of experience in office, Congresswoman Madeleine Bordallo once again has thrown her hat in the ring officially, filing her candidacy as Guam's delegate to Washington, DC. She's served as the island's first lady, a senator in the Guam Legislature, the second in command as the lieutenant governor and for the past 10 years, she's served the people of Guam as the island's delegate in our nation's capitol.

And today, Bordallo hopes to continue that reign by filing her candidacy at the Guam Election Commission in Hagatna. "My husband used to say 'competition is always good'," she proclaimed.

With more than two dozen supporters literally drumming as she submitted her papers, Bordallo feels she has the support to overcome her competitor in the September primary, Karlo Dizon. She says what sets her apart is that she's been able to build relationships in Congress, which she says is critical to getting your issues addressed. "I am in a senior position, this would be my sixth term to run and seniority means a great deal in Washington, DC," she noted.

Dizon meanwhile has called on Bordallo for a series of debates to go over the issues, she however isn't up for it. She stated, "I've made it a philosophy in the past that I never debate with anyone in my own party. I'd hate to see us have confrontations and so forth."

Her campaign instead will be setting up town hall meetings to meet people and answer questions. And while she takes the race seriously more than ever considering competition, she isn't taking criticism on her work or what others have said wasn't enough lightly one being war claims. "This is a difficult thing to get through Congress. We have 541 members of Congress that we have to deal with; I have gotten it the furthest, I've have gotten it passed in the House five times, so I really don't think comments like that are in good taste because its like saying my predecessors didn't do a good job either," she said.

However, she welcomes the competition and feels she has enough support from her party. "I do feel like I have a fair majority of the Democratic Party supporting me, but like I said, it's a contest and we have to go out there and work for it and I plan to work very hard," she said.

In addition to moving forward with the military buildup and war claims, she is looking forward to tackle a new set of issue such as the economy, jobs, health issues and education.