THE Provincial Board of Canvassers (PBOC) in Negros Occidental proclaimed the newly elected top officials in the province at the Capitol Social Hall in Bacolod City on Tuesday afternoon, May 13, 2025.
Governor Eugenio Jose Lacson, who was reelected to his post, and his partymate incumbent Fourth District Board Member Jose Benito Alonso, who also won the race for vice-governor, were proclaimed winners by the PBOC led by its chairman Provincial Election Supervisor Ian Lee Ananoria around 3 p.m.
Lacson garnered 911,614 votes, defeating his rivals former Victorias City mayor Francis Frederick Palanca with 67,694 votes, Ferdinand Diego with 24,116 votes, Toto Librando with 22,379 votes, and Paul Octaviano with 13,589 votes.
Alonso got 680,330 votes against the 139,159 votes of his rival, Rosemarie Jaro Dreyfus.
The PBOC also proclaimed the winning representatives, which include incumbent Victorias City Mayor Javier Miguel Benitez for the Third District; incumbent Vice Governor Jeffrey Ferrer for the Fourth District; reelectionist Emilio Yulo III for the Fifth District; and reelectionist Mercedes Alvarez for the Sixth District.
The proclaimed winning board members include Sixto Guanzon of the Second District; Andrew Montelibano and Bambi Depasucat of the Third District; incumbent Bago City Mayor Nicholas Yulo and Paula Alonso of the Fourth District; Hadji Trojillo of the Fifth District; and Ralph Alvarez of the Sixth District.
Other congressional and board member winners have yet to be proclaimed.
Moreover, Lacson also expressed his gratitude to all the Negrenses who supported him in this year’s elections.
“Rest assured that our team here at the Capitol building will continue to serve with honesty, integrity and most important with the heart,” Lacson said.
He said that this would be his third and final term as a governor of the province.
Lacson also urged other winning candidates to implement whatever they’ve promised for the Negrenses.
“Try to reach out to everyone and do your best in the next three years,” he said.
For his part, Benitez also said he is thankful for the trust of the people in the Third District.
He said this will be the time that the voice of the youth will be heard in the Congress.
“The future is now and we are leading that brighter tomorrow for the people in the Third District,” Benitez added. (MAP)