Councilor Winston Pepito was designated acting vice mayor of Cebu City from October 9 to November 22, 2025, when Mayor Tomas Osmena went abroad for medical treatment. If Vice Mayor Tomas follows through on his threat to resign, Pepito automatically assumes the vice mayor position. This highlights the importance of ranking among councilors in cities, towns, and provinces for succession rules in local governments.
Raw Votes vs. Proportional Percentage
Based on the 2025 election results, Councilor Dave Tumulak of the Cebu City South District garnered more raw votes than Councilor Pepito of the North District—by over 14,000 votes (14,395 to be precise). However, ranking is not determined by absolute vote totals when a local government unit has multiple councilor districts.
The Commission on Elections (Comelec) uses a proportional percentage formula, which tradition and practice have upheld, and which the Supreme Court has apparently supported. The formula calculates the percentage of votes a councilor received relative to the total registered voters in their specific district. The councilor with the highest proportional percentage is deemed the "first-ranking councilor."
Comelec's formula for ranking is: Ranking percentage equals total number of votes over total number of registered voters. In the 2025 elections, Cebu City had 721,469 registered voters, but separate figures for the north and south districts were not immediately available. Pepito, the top vote-getter in the north district, obtained a higher percentage than Tumulak, the top vote-getter in the south district.
Fairness in Multi-District Cities
In cities divided into more than one district, councilors are elected by district, not at large. Different districts often have different numbers of voters. Comparing absolute vote totals would not be fair, according to Comelec. The proportional percentage ensures equitable ranking across districts.
Councilor Tumulak conceded the existence of the proportional percentage formula and its application in Cebu City. He stated on Saturday, May 2, 2026, that while he received more votes in the south than Pepito did in the north, Pepito had a higher percentage in proportion to the number of voters in each district. Tumulak did not specify the difference in percentage.
