How do you define election ?

It is the means by which the people choose their

officials for a definite and fixed period and to
whom they entrust for the time being the
exercise of the powers of the government.
What are the means to choose officials?
Either manual or automated system
What is the basis for the phrase people
choose their officials?
It is based on the sovereign will or power of the
people.
What does the phrase definite and fixed
period mean?
It refers to the term of office, which means
a fixed and definite period of time which
the law describes that an officer may hold
an office.
It is the time during which an officer may
claim to hold office as a matter of right,
and fixes the interval after which the
several incumbents shall succeed one
another.
How is election defined in its ordinary or
common sense?

It is voting which includes the act of

receiving and casting the ballots, counting
them and making the return.

How is election defined in the context of the

Constitution?

It refers to the conduct of polls including

registration, campaign, casting, counting
and canvassing of votes.

How is this illustrated in the case of Taule v.

Santos?
Facts:
The secretary of Local Govt
nullified the election of federation officers on
ground of irregularity. It was argued that
jurisdiction over election contests involving
election of federation officers belong to Comelec.
Held: The jurisdiction of the Comelec is limited
to popular election only, which is the embodiment
of the popular will, the expression of the
sovereign power of the people. It involves the
choice or selection of candidates to public office
by popular vote as opposed to election of
federation officers. In Constitutional context, it is
the conduct of polls, including registration,
campaign, casting, counting and canvassing of
votes. None of these characterizes the federation
election.

How is this illustrated in the case of Javier

v. Comelec?
Facts: Javier challenged the proclamation of
Pacificador by the Comelec Second Division on
the ground that it should be done by the en banc
pursuant to the Constitution. Pacificador argued
that at the time the complaint was filed, it was
still in the nature of a pre-proclamation
controversy hence may be resolved by a division
in the exercise of its administrative power to
enforce election laws relative to election, return
and qualifications.
Held: Under the Constitution, the term
election should be interpreted in its totality,
that it refers to the conduct of the polls,
registration of voters, campaign, and the casting
and counting of votes. In making the Comelec the
sole judge of all contests involving the election ,
returns and qualifications of Members of
Congress, the Constitution intended to give it full
authority to hear and decide these cases from
beginning to end and on all related matters,
including those arising before the proclamation of
winners.
What is the purpose of elections as
enunciated in Lino Luna v. Rodriguez?
The purpose of elections in a democratic society
is to give the voters a direct participation in
the affairs of the government, either in
determining who shall be their public officials or
in deciding some question of public interest;
and for that purpose all of the legal voters should
be permitted, unhampered and unmolested, to
cast their ballot.
How is the purpose of elections laws
illustrated in Rulloda v. Comelec?
Facts: A widow substituted her deceased
husband as candidate for punong barangay and
obtained the highest number of votes. But it was
voided because substitution is not allowed in
barangay elections, it being non-partisan. As
such, there is no political party from which a
substitute is designated.
Helds:The absence of provision for substitution
in barangay elections does not mean it is
prohibited. Such interpretation ignores the
purpose of election laws which is to give effect to,
rather than frustrate, the will of the voters.
How are election laws construed?
Facts: A candidate for governor was disqualified
because he did not reacquire his Filipino
citizenship at the time he filed his COC and at the
time of election.

Held: Citizenship need not be possessed at the

time of filing of COC or election, but must be at
the start of term. In case of doubt, election laws
are liberally and equitably construed in favour of
the sovereign will. In applying election laws, it
would be far better to err in favour of popular
sovereignty than to be right in complex but little
understood legalisms. (Frivaldo v. Comelec)
Facts: The proclamation of a mayor was nullified
by the lower court on account that he won
through significant badges of fraud like mismatch
of keys to the padlocks, empty ballot boxes,
boxes with election returns, delay in counting due
to brownout, absence of watchers during
counting.
Held: These did not affect the integrity of the
ballots. Election contests involve public interest
and technicalities should not impede the
determination of the rue will of the people.
(Carlos v. Angeles)
What are the kinds of election?
Regular election refers to one provided by law
on sych dates are regular intervals for the
election of officers either nationwide or in certain
subdivisions.
Special election refers to one held to fill a
vacancy before the expiration of the full term for
which the incumbent was elected. It is also held
when there is failure of election.
Is the SK election regular or special?
Neither, based on the definition of a regular and
special election.
How is this answered in the case of Paras v.
Comelec?
Facts: A punong barangay was subject of a recall
election that was scheduled within a year prior to
the SK election, which also falls on the 2nd year of
the term of office of local elective officials.
Section 74 of the LGC prohibits recall election
within a year from assumption of office and within
a year immediately preceeding the next regular
local election.
Held: If the SK election was a regular election,
there would be no more recall election because it
always falls within the second year of term of
office, the only time when a recall election is
allowed. Thus, the next regular election must
refer to one where the office of the official sought
to be recalled is contested. The SK election is not
a regular election because its members do not
even possess suffrage under the Constitution.
The SK is nothing more than a youth organization.
Its elected officers are not one of those

enumerated as elective local officials under the

law.
What are the requisites of special election
after failure of election in Lucero v.
Comelec?
Facts: Two candidates for district representative
were separated by a mere 175 votes. But no
election was done in one polling place with 213
voters due to ballot snatching. But the leading
candidate questioned the authority of the
Comelec to call for a special election after almost
two years.
Held: There are 2 requisites for holding a special
election:
a. There is failure of election.
b. Such failure affects the results of the
election
Since only 175 votes separate them, the 213
votes in the polling place where election failed
could still affect the results of the election.
Hence, it is still statistically probable for the
special election to affect or change the final result
of the election. The delay is not attributable to
the voters of the polling place where election
failed but to the legal manoeuvres of parties.
What are the systems of election?
a. Manual system of election
b. Automated Election System (AES)
How did Loong v. Comelec answer whether
there can be manual count during
automated election?
Facts: During the first automated election in
ARMM, the counting machines in the Province of
Sulu could not accurately read the official ballots
because the ovals opposite the names of
candidates were misaligned. In 5 municipalities,
the official ballots were rejected because of
incorrect sequence codes. Thus, Comelec ordered
a manual count which was opposed on the
ground that under the automation law,
automated counting is mandatory. The remedy is
not manual count but replacement of defective
counting machines.
Held: Manual counting during the automated
election is not prohibited by law. The
Constitutional grant of the power to enforce and
administer all laws and regulations relative to the
conduct of election is so borad as to cover all the
necessary and incidental powers for it to achieve
the objective of holding a free, orderly, honest,
peaceful, and credible elections.

What is the Constitutional bases for

election?
Article II, Section 1, 1987 Constitution
The Philippines is a democratic and
republican State. Sovereignty resides in the
people and all government authority emanation
from them.
Who are elective officials?
1 President
1 VP
12 Senators
1 House of Representative per legislative district
1 Governor per province
1 Vice-governor per province
1 ARMM Governor
1 ARMM Vice-governor
3 ARMM Assemblymen per assembly district
1 Mayor per city and municipality
1 Vice-mayor per city and municipality
12/10/8 SP Members per city*
8 SB Members per municipality *
1 Punong Barangay per barangay
7 Barangay Kagawad per barangay
1 SK Chair per barangay
7 SK Councilors per barangay
Is there a Cordillera Autonomous Region
according to Ordillo v. Comelec?
Facts:
In a plebiscite, the people of the
Cordillera region rejected autonomy, except the
Province of Ifugao. Thus, the Comelec resolved
that it now compose the Cordillera Autonomous
Region.
Held: A sole province cannot constitute an
autonomous region which should be interpreted
in its common use and ordinary meaning, which
presupposes two or more provinces as shown in
the 13 regions composed of contiguous provinces
into which the country is divided for
administrative purposes.
How is the President elected? How long is
his term of office and is there a limit to it?
Art VII, Section 4(1), 1987 Constitution
The President and Vice-president shall be
elected by direct vote of the people for a term
of 6 years which shall begin at noon on the 30th
day of June next following the day of the election
and shall end at noon of the same date 6 years
thereafter. The President shall not be eligible
for any reelection. No person who has
succeeded as President and has served as
such for more than 4 years shall be qualified
for election to the same office at any time.

What does the phrase direct vote mean?

It means the President is elected by popular vote
of the people for a term of 6 years.
How is it different from the election of
President and Vice-president in the US?
Americans do not directly elect their president
and VP. Technically, they pick electors in an
Electoral College. 538 Electoral College votes are
distributed among the 50 states and the District
of Columbia. Each state along with DC has a
minimum of 3 Electoral College votes. It
increments depending on the population
according to the census.
(Guys tanawa nalang ni sa pic sa slide. Kapoya
btaw ug type about sa US haha sorry thanks.)
What does the sentence The President
shall not be eligible for any reelection
mean?
It means the presidency is a once in a lifetime
opportunity. He cannot be reelected either
immediately after his term of office or after an
interval of two or more terms.
But why was Joseph Estrada allowed to run
in 2010 after having been elected in 1998?
The Comelec said that the provision applies to
incumbent presidents only. It said the better
policy approach is to let the people decide who
the next president is. For on political questions,
this court may err but the sovereign people will
not.
What did the SC say in Pormento v. Estrada?
It declined to exercise its power of judicial review.
Since Estrada already lost in the elections, the
issue of whethere he can still run has become
moot and academic. It is no longer justiciable.
What is the difference of effects of
succession on term limit between the VP
and the Vice Mayor enunciated in Borja v.
Comelec?
Facts: A vice mayor succeeded the mayor who
died. He was elected mayor twice in a row. He ran
again as mayor but was opposed on the ground
that he already served 3 consecutive terms as
mayor. Art VII Sec 4 provides for succession of the
VP as President in the event of vacancy where it
says the President shall not be eligible for any
reelection. Then it says that No person who has
succeeded as President and has served as such
for more than 4 years shall be qualified for
election to the same office at any time. By
analogy, the vice-mayor should likewise be

considered to have served a full term as mayor of

he succeeds to the latters office and serves for
the remainder of the term. The framers of the
Constitution included such a provision because,
without it, the Vice-President, who simply steps
into the Presidency by succession would be
qualified to run for President even of he has
occupied that office for more than 4 years.
Held: The absence of a similar provision in Art X,
Section 8 on elective local officials throws in bold
relief the difference between the 2 cases. It
underscored the constitutional intent to cover
only the terms of office to which one may have
been elected for purpose of the 3-term limit on
local elective officials, disregarding for this
purpose service by automatic succession.
The VP is elected primarily to succeed the
President in the event of the latters death,
permanent disability, removal or resignation.
While he may be appointed to the cabinet, his
becoming so is entirely dependent on the good
graces of the President. In running for VP, he may
thus be said to also seek the Presidency. For their
part, the electors likewise choose as VP the
candidate who they think can fill the Presidency
in the event it becomes vacant. Hence, service in
the presidency for more than 4 years may rightly
be considered as service for a full term.

What is the term limit for the VicePresident?

Art VII Sec 4 Par 2 Constitution
No Vice-President shall serve for more
than two consecutive terms. Voluntary
renunciation of the office for any length of time
shall not be considered as an interruption in the
continuity of the service for the full term for
which he was elected.
How is voluntary renunciation defined in
Aldovino v. Comelec?
It is an act of surrender based on the free will or
loss of title to office by free choice. It is an act of
abandonment that emanated from the author.
Does preventive suspension interrupt the
term of office?
No. Preventive suspension does involve loss of
title to office hence it cannot interrupt the term of
office.
How do you illustrate the sentence No
person who has succeeded as President and
has served as such for more than 4 years
shall be qualified for election to the same
office at any time?

This is not so in the case of the Vice

mayor. Under the LGC, he is the Presiding Officer
of the sanggunian and he appoints all officials
and employees of such local assembly. He has
distinct powers and functions, succession to
mayorship in the event of vacancy therein being
only one of them. It cannot be said of him, as
much as of the CP in the event of a vacancy in
the Presidency, that in running for vice-mayor, he
also seeks mayorship. His assumption of the
mayorship in the event of vacancy is more a
matter of chance than of design. Hence, his
service in that office should not be counted in this
application of any term limit.

Joseph Estrada assumed the presidency on June

30, 1998. But he was forced by People Power II to
step down on January 20, 2001. Thus, he served
for only 2 years and 6 months, leaving a balance
of 3 years and 6 months from his 6-year term as
president.

Succession of the VP to the presidency for

more than 4 years is counted as one term
whereas succession of the Vice-mayor to
the mayorship is not counted as one term
for the purpose of determining term limit.

Art VII, Section 2, 1987 Constitution

How is the VP elected, how long is his term

of office and what are his qualifications?
Art VII Section3, 1987 Constitution
There shall be a Vice-President who shall
have the same qualifications and term of office
and be elected with and the same manner as the
President. He may be removed from office in the
same manner as the President.

Gloria Arroyo succeeded and served for 3 years

and 6 months. Since she did not serve for more
than 4 years, she was able to run and win the
presidency in 2004.
What are the qualifications of the
President?

No person may be elected President unless he is

a natural-born citizen of the Philippines, a
registered voter, able to read and write, at least
forty years of age on the day of the election, and
a resident of the Philippines for at least ten years
immediately preceding such election.
Who is a natural-born citizen of the
Philippines?
Natural Born citizens are those who are citizens of
the Philippines from birth without having to
perform any act to acquire or perfect their PH
citizenship.

Is this rule absolute?

No, because it may be done through election.
Article IV, Section 2, 1987 Constitution
Natural-born citizens are those who are citizens of
the Philippines from birth without having to
perform any act to acquire or perfect their
Philippine citizenship. Those who elect Philippine
citizenship in accordance with paragraph (3),
Section 1 hereof shall be deemed natural-born
citizens.
Article IV, Section 1 (3), Consti
(3) Those born before January 17, 1973, of Filipino
mothers, who elect Philippine citizenship upon
reaching the age of majority; and
How is this illustrated in Fornier v. Comelec?
Facts: FPJ ran for President but he was sought to
be disqualified because he is not a natural born
Filipino, his parents are both foreigners. His father
could not be Filipino because his grandfather was
a Spanish subject. Even if his father was a
Filipino, he could not have transmitted his Filipino
citizenship to his son FPJ because the latter is
illegitimate.
Held: The grandfather would have benefited
from the en masse Filipinization that the
Philippine Bill had effected in 1902. Having
acquired Filipino citizenship, the grandfather
extended it to his son, who is the father of FPJ.
Since FPJ has first seen light under the 1935
Constitution which confers citizenship to all
persons whose father are Filipino citizens
regardless of whether such children are
legitimate or illegitimate, he is a natural-born
Filipino because he did not need to perform any
act to acquire or perfect his Filipino citizenship.
How is residence treated under election
laws?
Residence is synonymous with domicile.
Imelda Marcos v. Comelec
Facts: A candidate for district representative
wrote in her COC 7 months as her period of
residence in the constituency where she seeks to
be elected preceding the election. She was
sought to be disqualified for failure to comply

with the one-year residency requirement because

she briefly stayed in the constituency and resided
and even voted in different places for four
decades.
Held: It is the fact of residence, not a statement
in the COC that is decisive whether an individual
satisfies the residency requirement. Domicile
means the individuals permanent home, a place
to which whenever absent for business or
pleasure, one intends to return. An individual
does not lose her domicile even if he has
maintained several residences for different
purposes over a long period of time. If none of
these purposes point unequivocally to an
intention to abandon her domicile of origin, she
retains it.
Domino v. Comelec
Facts: A candidate for district representative was
disqualified because he fell short of the 1 year
residency requirement. But he argued that he has
been a resident of the district for more than 1
year as evidenced by the house and lot he leased
and later purchased plus the affidavits of
neighbours attesting to his physical presence in
the place.
Held: Mere lease or purchase of a house and lot
may indicate intention to change domicile but it
does not engender the kind of permanency
required to prove abandonment of the previous
domicile.
When is domicile of origin considered
abandoned in favour of domicile of choice?
When these requisites concur:
a. Residence or bodily presence in the new
locality
b. Intention to remain there or animus
manendi
c. Intention to abandon the old domicile or
animus non revertendi (Romualdez v. RTC)
What is the rationale for residence
requirement enunciated in Torayno v.
Comelec?
Facts; A governor served for 3 consecutive
terms. But prior to the end of the 3rd term, he
transferred voters registration in the city.