Former vice chairperson Sean Latorre and his running mate Franz Beltran will return to the UP Diliman University Student Council (USC) as its next standard bearers.
This year’s special elections clocked record turnout at 37.13 percent—the highest voter turnout for a USC election since the 2021 regular polls. It exceeded not only the turnout during the 2023 special elections by 28.84 points, but also the turnout during the May election season.
Latorre will take the helm as the council’s new chairperson, after winning with 3,747 votes. His opponent Andrew Ronquillo lagged behind the abstain vote, which beat him by 1,328 votes.
Former NCPAG representative Beltran will take the vice chairperson post with 3,136 votes. He won with a narrow lead, only ahead by 208 votes against UP Alyansa’s sole bet, Therese Mangussad.
But although voter turnout is at its highest in four cycles, the USC is still incomplete, after the polls left 10 councilor seats vacant due to abstentions and a lack of candidates. In fact, the council will be even emptier this term than the last.
Only independents Kristian Mendoza and Joaquin Buenaflor were proclaimed winners, with 4,225 and 3,495 votes respectively. Abstentions took third place with 3,377 voters, surpassing the three other independent candidates who ran for the position.
Meanwhile, all college representative candidates won their respective elections. The members who will represent the colleges of Science, Home Economics, and Arts and Letters will join the 13 representatives who have been occupying the USC since the beginning of the term.
With the rest of the councilor posts rendered vacant, some college representatives might have to take up the role of leading the USC committees, which was the precedent last year.
The University Student Electoral Board will accept post-election protests until November 4. ●
CHAIRPERSON:
- Sean Latorre - 3,747 votes
- Abstain - 3,670 votes
- Andrew Ronquillo - 2,342 votes
VICE CHAIRPERSON:
- Franz Beltran - 3,136 votes
- Therese Mangussad - 2,928 votes
- Abstain - 2,390 votes
- Dexter Clemente - 1,305 votes
COUNCILORS:
- Kristian Mendoza - 4,225 votes
- Joaquin Buenaflor - 3,495 votes
- Abstain - 3,377 votes
- Olivia Herrera - 3,216 votes
- Aimee Ramos - 3,118 votes
- Ramon Christian Placido - 2,928 votes
COLLEGE REPRESENTATIVES:
- (CAL) Gonzales - 459 votes
- (CHE) Manoos - 531 votes
- (CS) Abanto - 566 votes
