Roel Degamo returns as the governor of Negros Oriental.
The Commission on Elections (COMELEC) Special Board of Canvassers proclaimed Degamo as the winner of the 2022 gubernatorial race on Monday, October 3, after the en banc declared one of the other candidates, Grego Gaudia, as a nuisance candidate.
The poll body decided to cancel the certificate of candidacy of Gaudia after he failed to present proof to back his use of the name 'Ruel Degamo' for the May 9 elections.
COMELEC also directed the special provincial board of canvassers to credit the votes of Gaudia to Degamo.
The decision pushed the votes obtained by Degamo from 281,773 to 331,726, surpassing the 301,319 votes received by former Bayawan City Mayor Pryde Henry Teves, the proclaimed winner of the gubernatorial race last May 10.
"Nakakuha ng almost 30,000 votes yung si Grego na hindi naman niya totoong ginagamit na pangalan talaga yung 'Ruel Degamo'," acting COMELEC spokesperson John Rey Laudiangco explained during DZRH's Damdaming Bayan.
"Ito yung classic example na halos kapareho ng spelling, na halos katunog yung pangalan, na nalito yung mga tao kung bakit nakaboto sa kanya," Laudiangco added.
