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With an unprecedented margin of 206,000 votes over his opponent in the May 14, 2007 elections, Iloilo Governor Niel D. Tupas, Sr. erased any doubts about who is the real leader in the eyes of Ilonggos.
Tupas, running under the Liberal Party, had no difficulty parrying the massive vote buying activities thrown to topple him from the governorship, getting a total of 398,000 votes against only 192,000 votes garnered by Vice Governor Roberto “Obet” Armada.
This is easily the biggest winning margin obtained by a gubernatorial candidate for Iloilo province, breaking the 162,000-lead that Tupas enjoyed when he trounched former 1st District Congressman Oscar Garin in 2004.
For Tupas, his huge landslide victory is a big political statement made by Ilonggo voters.
“It sends a strong message to my detractors that their machinations and black propaganda can never succeed in misleading the people,” Tupas said.
Tupas said the results of the elections vindicates him from the false accusations hurled against him by his political opponents.
According to sources, the Lakas-CMD machinery tried to buy votes for Armada and his running mate, Rolex Suplico, but the ploy failed to change the loyalties of the people.
Tupas won in all five districts, the first time this ever happened in local history. It caused a big embarrassment for the incumbent congressmen/women who discovered that their money isn’t enough to unseat Tupas.

Fifth District board member Niel “Junjun” Tupas, Jr. was so confident of a landslide victory that he took a relaxing break and rest just a couple of days before the May 14, 2007 elections.
“Junjun” was running for congressman under the Liberal Party against retired Army Colonel Enrique “Boy” Suplico, Jr., brother of incumbent congressman Rolex Suplico, who ran under Lakas CMD.
What he didn’t know was that the quiet atmosphere was just the lull before the storm.
In a complete surprise move, the Suplicos unleashed a final attack of money, terrorism and outright cheating in a desperate bid to win the congressional race and consolidate their power base in the 5th district.
Spending as much as P35 million, the Suplicos raided all the towns in the 5th district and enticed political leaders to turn around and join their bandwagon.
In the town of Sara, JunJun Tupas saw the ugly face of terrorism and cheating when he got “zero” votes in seven barangays while his father, Governor Tupas, got “zero” in one barangay.
But then, the loyalty of most 5th district ward leaders weren’t up for sale.
Despite the massive flow of money, these ward leaders held their ground and delivered a narrow victory for JunJun Tupas — only 3,700 votes— against his first cousin.
“This is real proof that money cannot buy everything,” said one barangay captain from Concepcion.
The Suplicos reportedly offered as much as P500 to swing the vote for them.
Still the majority of voters gave their nod for JunJun.
This is a painful defeat for the Suplicos who had hoped to arrogate the 5th district for themselves and topple down the political empire built by their uncle, Governor Niel Tupas, Sr.
Rolex won as vice governor, but without a power base in the 5th district, he is considered an “insignificant” political player and would likely fade away in subsequent elections.

The much-vaunted political leadership of Justice acting secretary Raul Gonzalez in Iloilo City was shattered to pieces like a glass bowl that fell to the ground after he failed to deliver on his commitments in the May 14, 2007 elections.
The P10,000 cash reward dangled by Gonzalez for barangay captains who are able to produce a 12-0 sweep for Team Unity in the senatorial race proved ineffective as Ilonggo voters rebuffed him by giving the Genuine Opposition at least six seats.
Gonzalez also offered P50,000 for barangay captains who succeed in keeping Liberal Party stalwart Perla Zulueta and neophyte Nielex Tupas from winning as city councilors, but this was apparently ignored by voters by propelling the two to numbers eight and nine positions.
Clearly, Gonzalez has lost his leadership. He has lost face. The honorable thing for him to do is resign as Justice acting secretary. That’s the least he could do to spare the nation from more embarrassments.

Governor Niel Tupas, Sr. has every reason to celebrate. Not only did he win by an overwhelming landslide for his third and last term as Governor of Iloilo. His three sons also won in the May 14, 2007 elections.

His eldest son, Niel Jr., survived an all-out effort by his cousins Rolex and Enrique Jr. to reclaim the congressional seat in the fifth district of Iloilo once held by his father.

“JunJun”, as he is more popularly known, edged out Enrique Suplico Jr. by about 3,700 votes despite the massive vote-buying undertaken by the incumbent congressman, Rolex Suplico.

Sources said Rolex spent more than P20 million in the fifth district in a big gamble to keep control of this vote-rich district and give him a toe-hold on the governorship in 2010.

The Suplicos reportedly alloted P500 per voter, but the money wasn’t enough to change the loyalties of fifth district voters, who have long considered Governor Tupas as their leader.

Raul “Boboy” Tupas ran unopposed as municipal mayor of Barotac Viejo, Iloilo.

Nielex “Lex” Tupas, the youngest son of the governor, emerged as the biggest winner when he barged into the “Magic 12″ for the Iloilo City council as a political neophyte, and the barricades put up by Justice acting secretary Raul Gonzalez notwithstanding.

Lex Tupas became the youngest city councilor at 27 when he landed number eight in the 12-member Sangguniang Panlungsod despite the bounty offered by Gonzalez of a P10,000 reward to barangay captains who succeed in keeping him and another opposition stalwart, Perla Zulueta, from winning.

Both Tupas and Zulueta ran under the Liberal Party/Ugyon Party.

The new councilor was proclaimed by the City Board of Canvassers this morning, May 18.