REELECTIONIST Gov. Hilario Davide III was supposed to be proclaimed winner of the gubernatorial election last Wednesday after his opponent, One Cebu Party’s Atty. Winston Garcia, conceded defeat.
However, Davide of the Liberal Party will have to wait until after the special election in Cordova.
The Commission on Elections (Comelec) had declared a failure of election in Barangay Gabi in Cordova, one of 11 towns in eight provinces across Visayas and Mindanao to hold special elections tomorrow.
Cebu Provincial Election Supervisor Eliseo Labaria said the result of the special election in Cordova might affect the ranking of Municipal Council members.
Labaria said only the remaining 436 voters of the 772 registered voters in a cluster precinct in Gabi will cast their votes, but the election returns of the town’s 34,273 registered voters have yet to be canvassed.
He said it might also affect Davide’s lead over his Garcia
In a related development, non-functioning Consolidation and Canvassing System laptops assigned to the Malabuyoc and Santander municipal board of canvassers have been returned after these were repaired at the National Technical Support Center in Metro Manila.
Slight changes
The electronic transmission of election returns from Malabuyoc reached the Provincial Board of Canvassers (PBOC) at 7 p.m. yesterday.
Last night, the PBOC proclaimed Provincial Board member-elects Jerome Librando, who garnered 55,931 votes, and Christopher Baricuatro, who garnered 50,050 votes, as winners in the seventh district.
With the arrival of votes from the seventh district, votes for Davide and Garcia increased, with the margin dropping from 15,361 to 15,225 for the incumbent.
The PBOC expects to receive electronic transmissions of election returns from Santander and Cordova tomorrow.
It’s not yet known who Santander’s 11,577 registered voters picked in last Monday’s local and national elections.
It’s the same situation with Cordova’s 34,273 registered voters.
The PBOC will convene tomorrow to receive election returns from Cordova.
Delayed transmission
Last Monday, 436 of 772 registered voters in a clustered precinct in Barangay Gabi failed to vote because they received misprinted ballots.
Their failure to cast their votes delayed the transmission of total votes of Cordova to the PBOC.
The special election in the town will be held from 6 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the Gabi Elementary School.
Comelec Elections Officer Rafael Nolasco is still unsure if teachers who will be facilitating the activity will receive additional fee.
Additional ballots will be delivered any time tomorrow.
The announcement for the special election has already been disseminated at the barangay halls, offices and bulletins of Cordova. Josette Marie G. Rafaeles, USJ-R Mass Comm Intern