Elsa Ricafort Merquita

Elsa Ricafort Merquita is the current Punong Barangay of Barangay Quinobcoban in Loon, Bohol, Philippines, serving the 2023 - 2026 term. The position — also commonly referred to as Barangay Captain — is the elected head of the barangay's local government unit.

Under the Local Government Code of 1991, the Punong Barangay leads the Sangguniang Barangay, signs ordinances and resolutions, represents the barangay in transactions with other government units, administers the barangay budget and appropriations, and oversees the Lupong Tagapamayapa that handles amicable settlement of disputes at the barangay level. The office is the most directly accountable elected position in the Philippine government.

Barangay Quinobcoban is one of 67 barangays in the municipality of Loon, in the province of Bohol, in the Central Visayas region of the Philippines. According to the 2020 Census of Population and Housing, Barangay Quinobcoban had a population of 159 residents — the constituency that Elsa serves as Punong Barangay. Bohol is classified as a 1st by the Bureau of Local Government Finance.

Elsa Ricafort Merquita was elected to office in the most recent Barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan Elections (BSKE), which took place on October 30, 2023. Under Republic Act No. 12232, barangay officials elected in 2023 serve four-year terms, meaning the current mandate runs until 2026. The next BSKE is scheduled for Monday, November 2, 2026, per COMELEC Resolution No. 11191.

A Philippine barangay's Sangguniang Barangay is composed of one Punong Barangay, seven Sangguniang Barangay Members (kagawads), a Sangguniang Kabataan (SK) Chairperson representing the youth sector, a Barangay Secretary, and a Barangay Treasurer. Together, these officials administer the smallest unit of Philippine local government and deliver frontline services — from barangay clearance issuance to peace and order, from public health assistance to the barangay's share of the Internal Revenue Allotment.