Jayvee Bernate 
In an unprecedented turn of events at Samar State University, the annual University Student Council Elections saw a unique outcome on Monday, October 9.
SSU Commission on Elections organized the election where the Dignified Alliance for Student Welfare, Independence, and Good Governance (DASIG) party emerged as the sole contenders for various USC positions.
DASIG party’s resounding victory relies on the partial results released on October 10.
In this year’s annual USC election, the standout feature was the exclusive participation of the DASIG party, making it the sole contender. With a lineup of 21 representatives, a president, and a vice president, it was a distinctive election marked by their solo candidacy.
Presidential and Vice Presidential aspirants Joshua Ibajo and Mariel Correche took the lead in the tentative election results and are poised to become the next USC standard-bearers.
Preliminary results released by SSU COMELEC showed Ibajo securing a total of 2,013 votes, with his strongest support coming from the College of Education, where he garnered 536 votes, followed by the College of Industrial Technology with 514. He also received 424, 290, and 249 votes from the College of Arts and Sciences, College of Engineering, and the College of Nursing and Health Sciences, respectively.
Correche followed closely with 2,000 votes, primarily from CoEd and CIT, with 555 and 505 votes, respectively. She also received 402 votes from CAS, 286 from CoEng’g, and 252 from CoNHS.
In addition to the presidential and vice presidential candidates, John Mark Boloc led the votes for the CoEng’g representative position with 252 votes, closely followed by Marnelle Joy Balagat with 244, Dominador Dacles III with 229, and a tie between Richelle Nablo and Andreyella Casey Taniñas with 227 votes.
In CIT, Rachael Stephane Peroso secured the most votes with 489, followed by Jhon Kherby Bacsal with 442, and Marlo Torrechiva with 358 votes.
CoNHS representative tally had Vivien Kaye Opiña at the forefront with 209 votes, followed by Camelle Rose Abotog with 187, Rhoma Mae Iso with 174, Marvin Bacaycay with 169, and Bert Labong with 160 votes.
Sheena Mae Jorge took the lead with 318 votes in CAS, followed by Anthony Solon with 303 and Psalmer Dave Gulla with 298 votes.
Finally, CoEd saw Angelo Brin leading with 472 votes, followed by Allaine Joy Pacayra with 451, Earl Glenuel Mosquera with 441, Jhanrey Cupido with 411, and Angeline Cabidog with 389 votes.
Results remain tentative and partial, as the SSU COMELEC has announced the commencement of the protest period.
As per Article XI, Section 7 of the USC constitution and by-laws, any bona fide SSU student may submit complaints during this period against tentative winners or candidates who do not meet the qualifications outlined in Article VII of the said CBL, or if they concealed relevant information from COMELEC during the election.
While the specific date of the protest period has not been disclosed by SSU COMELEC, students wanting to file formal complaints may do so during this period via the SSU COMELEC email, ssu.comelec@ssu.edu.ph.
#MASID2023
#USCElections2023
[EDIT: SSU-COMELEC updated their post and indicated that the protest period is until October 12, 12:00 PM only.]
