Admin party head wins reelection as South Cotabato governor
The Provincial Board of Canvassers of South Cotabato officially proclaimed incumbent Gov. Reynaldo Tamayo Jr. (in blue) winner in the gubernatorial race, securing a third term in office. Photo from Tamayo’s Facebook page
KORONADAL CITY, South Cotabato – Incumbent South Cotabato Gov. Reynaldo Tamayo Jr., the national president of the Partido Federal ng Pilipinas (PFP), has been reelected to his third term following a landslide win in Monday’s elections.
The Provincial Board of Canvassers (PBOC) chaired by lawyer Jay Gerada, the provincial election supervisor, officially proclaimed Tamayo and other winning provincial candidates after convening at 4:40 p.m. Tuesday, May 13, at the Sangguniang Panlalawigan session hall.
Gerada said the proclamation of winners was delayed for several hours due to the late transmission of voting results from far-flung precincts in the province.
The province has a total of 629,367 registered voters, with about 79 percent showing up to vote on May 12.
“This election is significant because it was for the three (legislative) districts of the province,” Gerada said, referring to the addition of a third district in the province in this year’s polls.
Based on the final and official tally of the PBOC, Tamayo garnered a total of 346,611 votes, winning over closest rival, Shine Miguel of Aksyon by nearly 200,000 votes. Two other independent bets, Efren Biclar and Ramir Badayos, posted less than 2,000 votes each.
Tamayo’s running mate, incumbent Vice Gov. Arthur Pingoy Jr., who ran unopposed, received 331,376 votes.
The PFP slate swept all 10 provincial board seats, with Rubi Hatulan, Bebot Escobillo and Nilda Almencion proclaimed winners in the first district; Annabelle Pingoy, Junette Hurtado and Cecile Diel in the second district; and, Nicole Causing, Ervin Luntao, Toto Rosal and Sarse Atam Jr. proclaimed in the third district.
In the congressional race, PFP’s incumbent first district Rep. Isidro Lumayag was declared winner after receiving 69,965 votes while partymate Ferdinand Hernandez got 103,984 votes to reclaim the second district seat.
Hernandez previously held the second district seat for three terms from 2013-2022 before losing to Tamayo in the 2022 gubernatorial race. A former PDP-Laban stalwart, he switched to Tamayo’s PFP in October 2024.
He defeated Tamayo’s former ally, incumbent Rep. Peter Miguel of Lakas-CMD, by over 25,000 votes. Miguel had drawn condemnation from supporters of former President Rodrigo Duterte after endorsing the impeachment of Vice President Sara Duterte.
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In the third district, former Tboli Mayor Dibu Tuan of Aksyon was proclaimed winner after garnering 81,365 votes, besting three other bets, among them former Surallah Mayor Antonio Bendita of PFP.
