Story highlights
Two candidates for mayor of San Teodoro were tied on 3,236 votes each
They settled the election by flipping a coin, which is permitted by the election body
The son of a previous mayor won the contest
In the hi-tech era of electronic voting, election authorities in the Philippines settled a dead heat between two candidates for mayor in a decidedly old-school way – by flipping a coin.
When all the ballots were counted after Monday’s election, the two men running for mayor in the town of San Teodoro – Marvic Feraren and Boyet Py – both ended up with 3,236 votes each, CNN affiliate ABS-CBN reported Wednesday.
To break the impasse, a decision was taken to use a coin, Reny Pagilagan, the town’s acting election officer, told the local broadcaster.
The Philippine Commission on Elections permits coin flips as a way of deciding tied votes, according to ABS-CBN.
So, the two rivals faced off inside a ring of desks in a bare-walled room, taking it in turns to flick the coin to the ground.
At the end of the contest, Feraren, the son of a previous mayor, was declared the winner.
The outcome was received without negative reaction in San Teodoro, which is in the province of Oriental Mindoro, ABS-CBN reported.