Osmeña, Lapid, Guingona still occupy last three Senate spots

Former senator Sergio Osmeña III, incumbent Senator Manuel Lapid, and Bukidnon Rep. Teofisto Guingona III remain the leading bets who may be awarded the last three spots in the Senate, a report from the National Board of Canvassers (NBOC) showed. A national canvass report as of Monday 4 PM by the Commission on Elections (Comelec) — sitting as the NBOC — showed that Osmeña continues to hold on to 10th place with 11,583,854 votes, while Lapid and Guingona remains at 11th and 12th place, with 10,971,045 and 10,200,293 votes respectively. But trailing the three at 13th place is Akbayan Rep. Ana Theresia “Risa" Hontiveros-Baraquel with 9,041,494 votes. Behind Hontiveros are Muntinlupa Rep. Rozzano “Ruffy" Biazon with 8,566,631 votes and Jose de Venecia III with 8,317,528 votes who now rank 14th and 15th, respectively. Earlier in the day, Comelec Commissioner Gregorio Larrazabal said that they will proclaim the last three winning senators on Tuesday morning. On Saturday afternoon, the poll body already proclaimed nine of the 12 senators, namely:

• BONG REVILLA, Ramon (Lakas-Kampi) — 19,414,795 votes (as of Monday afternoon)
• ESTRADA, Jose (Pwersa ng Masang Pilipino (PMP) — 18,842,717 votes
• DEFENSOR-SANTIAGO, Miriam of the People's Reform Party (PRP) — 17,230,051 votes
• DRILON, Franklin of the Liberal Party (LP) — 15,764,639 votes
• ENRILE, Juan Ponce (PMP) — 15,577,837 votes
• CAYETANO, Pilar Juliana of Nacionalista Party (NP) —13,583,810 votes
• MARCOS, Ferdinand Jr. (NP) — 13,098,254 votes
• RECTO, Ralph (LP) — 12,344,675 votes
• SOTTO, Vicente III of the Nationalist People's Coalition (NPC) — 11,838,317 votes

Saturday's proclamation was based on 115 certificates of canvass (COC). Of the total 274 COCs, 171 are from the overseas absentee voting. As of Monday, the Comelec has canvassed 121 COCs or 37,685,706 votes. The new senators will join incumbents Edgardo Angara, Joker Arroyo, Alan Peter Cayetano, Francis Escudero, Gregorio Honasan, Panfilo Lacson, Loren Legarda, Francis Pangilinan, Antonio Trillanes, Manuel Villar Jr., and Juan Miguel Zubiri in the 15th Congress. Senator Benigno Aquino III's term will also expire in 2013 but official and unofficial tallies indicate that he is slated to win the presidency, leaving a vacant seat in the Senate. Larrazabal, however, said that they cannot proclaim a 13th senator to fill the vacancy because technically there is no vacant seat yet. He said that the Congress can hold a special elections for the post — once it is vacated — if it wants to. - RJAB Jr., GMANews.TV