How Gringo captured the last spot

MANILA, Philippines – It could have been anybody’s game but Senator-elect Gregorio “Gringo” Honasan of the United Nationalist Alliance (UNA) triumphed in the end and secured the last spot in the Magic 12. 

Based on the official results of the Comelec, it took 13.07 million votes for Honasan to be re-elected to the Philippine Senate. Honasan won his race against his closest rival, UNA bet Richard “Dick” Gordon, who, until the 14th canvass report, was over 600,000 votes behind. Gordon registered 12.25 million votes compared to Honasan’s 12.91 million votes in that canvass. 

The 15th and 16th canvass reports recorded votes from Marinduque, Samar and Lanao del Norte. Honasan got a total of 160,825 votes in these provinces, further adding to his lead. Gordon, at the end of the 16th canvass, garnered 705,940 votes. 

When the 15th canvass from Marinduque and Samar came in, Honasan again pulled away from Gordon, with his votes reaching 13.02 million. His lead was sustained until the 16th canvass, which covered Lanao del Norte. 

Gordon did not have a chance to increase his votes, which, until the 16th canvass, was still below 12.5 million. 

Vote drivers

Honasan’s win was driven by his lead in 3 vote-rich regions — Calabarzon, the National Capital Region, and Central Luzon, where he got a total of 5.75 million votes. 

His win in Bicol and the Ilocos region also helped boost his chances for re-election. The two regions gave him as much as 1.7 million votes. 

This means that in just those 5 regions, Honasan already had 7.45 million votes, more than 50% of his total votes as early as the 14th canvass. 

The 15 provinces and cities that delivered the most votes for Honasan are:

• Cavite – 531,757
• Bulacan – 495,194
• Pangasinan – 490,049
• Nueva Ecija – 448,673
• Rizal – 430,015
• Laguna – 412,650
• Batangas – 388,646
• Quezon City – 343,890
• Cebu – 333,173
• Quezon – 323,238
• Manila – 320,209
• Camarines Sur – 280,898
• Pampanga – 266,932
• Isabela – 246,344
• Caloocan City – 224,366

The absentee voters in various parts of the globe, including many Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs), gave Honasan only 24,233 votes. While the votes for the other Senatorial candidates were also in that range, Honasan was still 16,000 votes behind the leader, Loren Legarda, who garnered the most votes at 40,651.

Honasan’s votes overseas were driven by the many votes he received in OFW-rich areas which already earned him more than 50% of his total votes abroad. These locations were:

• Hong Kong – 9,893
• Saudi Arabia – 5,558
• United Arab Emirates – 2,941

Notable is Gordon’s turning the tables on Honasan in the 2nd canvass which included Bataan, Camiguin, Misamis Occidental, Cagayan de Oro City, Makati City, and votes from Hong Kong and Singapore. But Gordon’s lead was short-lived.

Honasan turned the tables on Gordon when the 4th Canvass came in. This included the provinces of Agusan del Sur, Biliran, and Tarlac as well as Malabon City, and votes from Belgium and Chile.

Aside from being a senator since 1995 – this year is his 4th senatorial campaign – Honasan is best known for his leading role in a series of coup plots against the administration of President Corazon Aquino back in the late 1980s. 

Gordon, on the other hand, is best known for his run as mayor of Olongapo City at the time the US bases were present; as head of the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA); and as tourism chief under the Arroyo administration. He was also a senator from 2004 to 2010.

Of the two, Honasan is the younger Senate bet; he was born in 1948, while Gordon was born 1945. – Rappler.com