Malabon vice mayor wins with 575-vote margin

MANILA, Philippines - With a slim lead of only 575 votes, United Nationalist Alliance’s Jeannie Sandoval on Wednesday night was proclaimed winner in Malabon’s vice mayoral race.

Sandoval, wife of former Malabon-Navotas congressman Ricky Sandoval, garnered 38,592 votes from the city’s 213 clustered precincts. 

Trailing her was Ed Dimagiba of the Nationalist People’s Coalition (NPC) with 38,017 votes; re-electionist Vice Mayor Diosdado Cunanan of the Liberal Party (LP) with 27,282 votes; and Paulo Oreta, son of former Mayor Tito Oreta, with 18,081 votes.

The proclamation of Sandoval was one day behind the proclamation of Mayor Len Oreta (LP) and Rep. Josephine Noel-Lacson (NPC), who both ran unopposed.

The delay was caused by the failure to canvass more than 700 votes from a clustered precinct in Barangay Maysilo in district one due to the lack of a compact flash card.

Ten of the 12 winning councilors from the first and second districts were also proclaimed that night. The two others from district one were proclaimed together with Sandoval for the same reason.