MANILA, Philippines (UPDATED) – Vice Mayor Joy Belmonte is set to become the next mayor of Quezon City, defeating Bingbong Crisologo in the 2019 elections.

Belmonte was proclaimed as the next Quezon City mayor after the final count came in showing that she got 469,480 votes. Contender Crisologo only garnered 366,215.

Her vice mayoral candidate Gian Sotto also won with 382,393. He defeated Crisologo’s vice mayoral candidate Jopet Sison, who garnered 343,473.

Belmonte ran under her Quezon City-based Serbisyo sa Bayan party, named after the initials of her father, Sonny Belmonte, who had served as mayor and congressman. 

In the hopes of getting President Rodrigo Duterte’s endorsement, Joy Belmonte left the opposition Liberal Party (LP) that her family had long been associated with, and allied her local party with PDP-Laban. The President’s party, however, fielded Crisologo as its official mayoral bet. 

While she did not have the backing of her national party, Joy Belmonte was endorsed by the block-voting Iglesia ni Cristo and by outgoing Quezon City Mayor Herbert Bautista.

Joy’s father, former House Speaker Sonny Belmonte, is a legacy member of the LP, while her cousin, Quezon City 6th District Representative Kit Belmonte, is the LP’s secretary general.

In her campaigns, she spoke frequently about how she aspires to leave the same impact that her father made on the city during his time as mayor from 2001 to 2010, but that she wants to do it under her own terms.

Compared to her father Sonny, the 49-year-old Joy describes herself as more “frank” and “direct” in managing people around her.

She said in an interview with Inquirer, “Now I am running, hopefully, as Joy Belmonte, and no longer as the daughter of the former mayor.” – Rappler.com

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