By Mark Vincent A. Durano

With a lower voter turnout of 24.27 percent, five candidates from Isanliyab Servant Leaders’ Union (ISLU) and one from Kadiwa Student Coalition (KSC) will lead the 90th FEU Central Student Organization (FEUCSO), announced during the #FEUElections2025 Proclamation at the FEU Grandstand yesterday, May 9.

Data from the FEU Commission on Elections (COMELEC) show that only 5,031 out of 20,733 students voted.

For this year, 15,704 undergraduate students from both the Manila and Makati campuses did not vote.

This marks a significant fall since 2023 and 2024 where the turnout peaked at 44.79 and 36.46 percent, respectively.

New FEUCSO helms

Outgoing FEUCSO 89 Auditor Raezon Gonzales will step up his game as the 90th FEUCSO President.

He ran again under ISLU and went head-to-head with KSC President Goeffrey Lababo and independent candidate Lawrence Aidan Cunanan—the first three-way presidency race since the two parties’ establishment in 2017.

Gonzales won with 2,393 votes, followed by outgoing FEU Political Science Society (PSS) President Lababo with 1,545 votes, and outgoing Institute of Health Sciences and Nursing (IHSN) Student Council (SC) President Cunanan with 957 votes.

Notably, this is Cunanan’s second bid for presidency after losing to ISLU’s Christmer Roland Ordanes last year.

Also under ISLU, outgoing Institute of Arts and Sciences (IAS) Auditor Monika Panganiban will lead as Vice President with 3,070 votes over outgoing FEU Makati SC President Adrian Louis Diumano.

Diumano also lost again in this year’s polls as he ran under the same banner and position last 2024.

For the secretary post, outgoing FEU Communication Society Treasurer Ivy Grace Bisnar won with 2,806 votes overcoming FEUCSO Director for Internal and Disciplinary Affairs Christian James Nambatac.

Associate Director of The Entrepreneurship Club - FEU Katherine Lei Nicolas who first lost as PSS Press Relations Officer (P.R.O.) now won as FEUCSO Treasurer with 2,497 votes over Reginalois Alessandra De Guzman. 

As the sole winning candidate from KSC, outgoing FEUCSO Director for Data Analytics Margarette Antoinette Macatangay garnered 2,521 votes against outgoing FEU Biological Science Society President Kemuel Malachi Mabalot who ran independently last year.

Lastly for P.R.O., FEUCSO Director for Marketing and Content Sean Michael Paquita steps up with 3,058 votes against FEU Sexuality and Gender Alliance Associate Director for Creatives and Marketing Krizzy Aldrienne Sotes.

Institute populations

Despite the low voter turnout, no candidates were flagged with a failure of elections.

The Institute of Architecture and Fine Arts posted the lowest voter turnout of 5.72 percent or 96 votes out of 1,679.

On the other hand, IAS produced the highest voter turnout of 29.43 percent, equivalent to 1,582 student voters out of the 5,376-strong population.

As the biggest and youngest institute, IHSN followed with a 28.88-percent turnout or 1,873 votes out of 6,486.

FEU Makati students totaled a 22.02-percent turnout as 72 out of 327 voted.

Additionally, 901 out of 4,211 Institute of Accounts, Business, and Finance students voted for this year’s election with a 21.4-percent voter turnout.

The smallest Institute of Education in the Manila campus, in terms of population with 409, also elected its lone candidate for vice presidency with 86 votes or 21.03 percent.

With an 18.74-percent voter turnout, 421 out of 2,247 Institute of Tourism and Hotel Management students participated in the polls.

FEU Advocate has reached out to FEU COMELEC to clarify the required minimum voter turnout of 20 percent per voting population to declare a failure of elections.

FEU COMELEC Chairperson Janeth Hyatt declined for a post-event interview, but stated that they will not open applications for appointment for vacant seats in the organizations’ executive boards.

(Photo by Thea Danielle Morin/FEU Advocate)