Young leads in poll recount

CEBU, Philippines - Former Cebu City vice mayor Joy Augustos Young garnered 238 votes against Vice Mayor Edgardo Labella who got 59 votes in a review of the ballots in first 116 precincts, the Commission on Elections said.  The recount involved only 20 percent of votes cast.

The election protest filed by Young was already withdrawn on June 8, 2015.

Despite the withdrawal, the Comelec First Division still ordered to continue the proceedings after it found “substantial recovery that would lead to the conclusion that there is merit or legitimacy in the election protest.”

“Considering further that the protestant has already withdrawn his protest for the rest of the protested precincts, recount of the protestee’s counter-protested pilot precincts must now continue, at the soonest possible time, pursuant to procedures laid down in Comelec Resolution No. 8804, as amended,” read the order dated November 25, 2015.

The order was signed by Presiding Commissioner Christian Robert Lim and Commissioners Luie Tito Guia and Ma. Rowena Amelia Guanzon.

On May 17, 2013, Labella was proclaimed by the City Board of Canvassers as the winning candidate and the duly-elected vice mayor of Cebu City after garnering a total of 203,267 votes against Young’s 203,083 votes or a margin of 184 votes.

For the Comelec to find substantial recovery in the election protest, Young should recover at least 20 percent of the overall vote lead of Labella which is 184 and the required reasonable recovery would be 37 votes.

“This possible net effect change in the results of the votes amounting to an additional two hundred thirty-eight (+238) votes in favor of the Protestant goes beyond the thirty-seven (37) vote requirement for substantial recovery, and is even higher than the total one hundred eighty-four (184) total vote lead of the Protestee over the Protestant,” the order further read.

Former mayor Tomas Osmeña and his running mate, Young, both had abandoned their election protests against Mayor Michael Rama and Labella, respectively.

Rama won by a margin of 6,376 votes over Osmeña in the May 2013 elections. He obtained a total of 217,448 votes while Osmeña only got 211,072 votes. (FREEMAN)