Lito Lapid gets another Senate term, partly thanks to ‘Ang Probinsyano’
MANILA, Philippines (First published at 8:02 p.m. on May 14) — A successful Senate comeback is set for former senator and actor Lito Lapid — a feat that he previously said would not be possible without the help of his appearance on the top-rated TV drama "Ang Probinsyano."
The final and official results from the Commission on Elections showed 16,965,464 voters supported Lapid’s Senate bid, placing him at the 7th spot in the winners’ circle.
READ: No Kidding — 'Ang Probinsyano' is now on Netflix
He was first elected as a senator in 2004. In 2010, former president and now-House Speaker Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo signed the Free Legal Assistance Act of 2010, which was authored by Lapid.
In a Feb. 22, 2019 story by The STAR, Lapid acknowledged that his appearance on "Ang Probinsyano" partly boosted his Senate bid.
READ: Probinsyano helping Lito Lapid
“When I go around the palengke (market) area, the people keep on shouting, ‘Si Cardo, si Cardo!’ looking for Coco (as the cop Cardo). Then, they asked, ‘Bakit namatay ka sa Probinsyano (Why did you die on Ang Probinsyano)?’ The show is helping me a lot,” he said.
When asked about his advocacy when he filed his certificate of candidacy last year, Lapid replied that he would just be repeating what he had said when he ran for office before. — Ian Nicolas Cigaral
Editor's note: We have updated this story to reflect the final and official results.
Updates on the senatorial race following the May 13 midterm elections in the Philippines.
(Photo by The STAR/Michael Varcas)
The Commission on Elections has officially proclaimed the following elected senators:
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Cynthia Villar
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Grace Poe
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Bong Go
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Ronald dela Rosa
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Sonny Angara
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Lito Lapid
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Imee Marcos
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Francis Tolentino
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Koko Pimentel
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Bong Revilla
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Nancy Binay
The final and official tally of votes shows that nine of President Rodrigo Duterte's allies candidates won a seat at the upper house.
.@COMELEC chief Sheriff Abas thanks the poll body’s personnel as well as its partners for the “successful” conduct of #Election2019.
— Philstar.com (@PhilstarNews) May 22, 2019
“The public has asked a lot from us. I’m proud to say we have delivered what is needed.” | via @gaeacabico #SenateRace pic.twitter.com/U5Xcadx7o5
The Commission on Elections is set to proclaim the winning senators and party-lists today.
The proclamation comes nine days after the 2019 midterm polls. The National Board of Canvassers ended the canvass late Tuesday.
With only two certificates of canvass left for the National Board of Canvassers to tally, the board suspends its session on Monday and will resume canvassing on Tuesday morning.
Comelec said the COCs from the Philippine embassies in Saudi Arabia and in Washington account for 555,092 votes.
The board has canvassed 165 of 167 COCs and the Comelec expects to hold proclamations of winning candidates on Tuesday.
Canvassing resumes Monday night.
The National Board of Canvassers resumes its session at 8:13 p.m.
— Philstar.com (@PhilstarNews) May 20, 2019
The board is now tabulating the certificate of canvass from Japan. #Election2019 | @rosette_adel pic.twitter.com/55wAoIzecB
The Commission on Elections said earlier Monday that the proclamation of winners in the senatorial and party-list elections will likely happen on Tuesday.
Party-list proclamations will be in the morning while the country's 12 new senators-elect will be proclaimed in the evening.
Commission on Elections Director Frances Arabe of the commission's Education and Information Department tells reporters that proclamation of winners can be done "early next week" but cannot say for certain if it will be done in one go.
The Comelec has conducted partial proclamations in past elections.
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