CHAPTER 19
Inclusion and exclusion cases
● Inclusion and exclusion cases which shall
be decided not later than seven before the
date of the election shall be within the
exclusive original jurisdiction of the
municipal or metropolitan trial court.1
● The notice of such decision shall be served
to all parties within twenty-four hours
following its promulgation and any party
adversely affected may appeal therefrom
within twenty-four hours to the regional
trial court which shall finally decide the
same not later than two days before the
date of the election.2
● The Municipal and Metropolitan Trial
Courts shall have original and exclusive
jurisdiction over all cases of inclusion and
exclusion of voters in their respective
cities or municipalities. Decisions of the
Municipal or Metropolitan Trial Courts
may be appealed by the aggrieved party to
the Regional Trial Court within five (5)
days from receipt of notice thereof.
Otherwise, said decision shall become final
and executory. The regional trial court
shall decide the appeal within ten (10)
days from the time it is received and the
decision shall immediately become final
and executory. No motion for
reconsideration shall be entertained. 3
● Any person whose application for
registration has been disapproved by the
Board or whose name has been stricken
out from the list may file with the court a
petition to include his name in the
permanent list of voters in his precinct at
any time except one hundred five (105)
days prior to a regular election or seventy-
five (75) days prior to a special election. It
shall be supported by a certificate of
disapproval of his application and proof of
service of notice of his petition upon the
Board. The petition shall be decided within
fifteen (15) days after its filing.4
1 Omnibus Election Code, Section 49.
2 Id.
3 An Act Providing For A General Registration Of Voters,
Adopting A System Of Continuing Registration,
Prescribing The Procedures Thereof And Authorizing
 If the decision is for the inclusion of voters
in the permanent list of voters, the Board
shall place the application for registration
previously disapproved in the
corresponding book of voters and indicate
in the application for registration the date
of the order of inclusion and the court
which issued the same.5
● Any registered voters, representative of a
political party or the Election Officer, may
file with the court a sworn petition for the
exclusion of a voter from the permanent
list of voters giving the name, address and
the precinct of the challenged voter at any
time except one hundred (100) days prior
to a regular election or sixty-five (65) days
before a special election. The petition shall
be accompanied by proof of notice to the
Board and to the challenged voter and
shall be decided within ten (10) days from
its filing.6
● If the decision is for the exclusion of the
voter from the list, the Board shall, upon
receipt of the final decision, remove the
voter’s registration record from the
corresponding book of voters, enter the
order of exclusion therein, and thereafter
place the record in the inactive file.7
● Any registered voter who has not been
included in the precinct certified list of
voters or who has been included therein
with a wrong or misspelled name may file
with the Board an application for
reinstatement or correction of name. If it is
denied or not acted upon, he may file on
any date with the proper Municipal Circuit,
Municipal or Metropolitan Trial Court a
petition for an order directing that his
name be entered or corrected in the list.
He shall attach to the petition a certified
copy of his registration record or
identification card or the entry of his name
in the certified list of voters used in the
preceding election, together with the proof
that his application was denied or not
The Appropriation Of Funds Therefor [RA 8189],
section 33.
4 Id. at section 34.
5 Id.
6 Id. at section 35.
7 Id.
 acted upon by the Board and that he has
served notice to the Board.8
Annulment of Book of Voters
● The Commission shall, upon verified
petition of any voter or election officer or
duly registered political party, and after
notice and hearing, annul any book of
voters that is not prepared in accordance
with the provisions of this Act or was
prepared through fraud, bribery, forgery,
impersonation, intimidation, force or any
similar irregularity, or which contains data
that are statistically improbable. No order,
ruling or decision annulling a book of
voters shall be executed within ninety (90)
days before an election.9
Pre-Proclamation Controversies
● A pre-proclamation controversy refers to
any question pertaining to or affecting the
proceedings of the board of canvassers
which may be raised by any candidate or
by any registered political party or
coalition of political parties before the
board or directly with the Commission, or
any matter raised under Sections 233, 234,
235 and 236 in relation to the preparation,
transmission, receipt, custody and
appreciation of the election returns.10
● The Commission shall have exclusive
jurisdiction of all pre-proclamation
controversies. It may motu proprio or
upon written petition, and after due notice
and hearing, order the partial or total
suspension of the proclamation of any
candidate-elect or annual partially or
totally any proclamation, if one has been
made, as the evidence shall warrant in
accordance with the succeeding sections.11
● Questions affecting the composition or
proceedings of the board of canvassers
may be initiated in the board or directly
with the Commission. However, matters
raised under Sections 233, 234, 235 and
236 of the Omnibus Election Code in
relation to the preparation, transmission,
receipt, custody and appreciation of the
8 Id. at section 37.
9 RA 8189, section 38.
10 Omnibus Election Code, section 241.
11 Id. at section 242.
12 An Act Providing For Synchronized National And
Local Elections And For Electoral Reforms, Authorizing
election returns, and the certificates of
canvass shall be brought in the first
instance before the board of canvassers
only.12
● All pre-proclamation controversies on
election returns or certificates of canvass
shall, on the basis of the records and
evidence elevated to it by the board of
canvassers, be disposed of summarily by
the Commission within seven (7) days
from receipt thereof. Its decisions shall be
executory after the lapse of seven (7) days
from receipt by the losing party of the
decision of the Commission.13
● Parties adversely affected by a ruling of
the board of canvassers on questions
affecting the composition or proceedings
of the board may appeal the matter to the
Commission within three (3) days from a
ruling thereon. The Commission shall
summarily decide the case within five (5)
days from the filing thereof.14
Issues that may be raised in pre-proclamation
controversy
● The following shall be proper issues that
may be raised in a pre-proclamation
controversy:
(a) Illegal composition or
proceedings of the board of
canvassers;
(b) The canvassed election returns
are incomplete, contain material
defects, appear to be tampered
with or falsified, or contain
discrepancies in the same returns
or in other authentic copies
thereof as mentioned in Sections
233, 234, 235 and 236 of this
Code;
(c) The election returns were
prepared under duress, threats,
coercion, or intimidation, or they
are obviously manufactured or
not authentic; and
(d) When substitute or fraudulent
returns in controverted polling
places were canvassed, the results
Appropriations Therefor, And For Other Purposes [RA
7166], section 17.
13 Id. at section 18.
14 Id. at section 19.
 of which materially affected the
standing of the aggrieved
candidate or candidates.15
● When the composition or proceedings of
the board of canvassers are contested, the
board of canvassers shall, within twenty-
four hours, make a ruling thereon with
notice to the contestant who, if adversely
affected, may appeal the matter to the
Commission within five days after the
ruling with proper notice to the board of
canvassers.16
● After due notice and hearing, the
Commission shall decide the case within
ten days from the filing thereof. During the
pendency of the case, the board of
canvassers shall suspend the canvass until
the Commission orders the continuation
or resumption thereof and citing their
reasons or grounds therefor.17
● Any candidate, political party or coalition
of political parties, contesting the
inclusion or exclusion in the canvass of any
election returns on any of the grounds
authorized under this article or in Sections
234, 235 and 236 of Article XIX shall
submit their verbal objections to the
chairman of the board of canvassers at the
time the questioned returns is presented
for inclusion or exclusion, which
objections shall be noted in the minutes of
the canvassing.18
● The board of canvassers upon receipt of
any such objections shall automatically
defer the canvass of the contested returns
and shall proceed to canvass the rest of the
returns which are not contested by any
party.19
● Within twenty-four hours from and after
the presentation of a verbal objection, the
same shall be submitted in written form to
the board of canvassers. Thereafter, the
board of canvassers shall take up each
contested return, consider the written
objections thereto and summarily rule
thereon. Said ruling shall be made oral
initially and then reduced to writing by the
board within twenty-four hours from the
time the oral ruling is made.20
15 Omnibus Election Code, section 243.
16 Id. at section 244.
17 Id.
18 Id. at section 245.
19 Id.
● Any party adversely affected by an oral
ruling on its/his objection shall
immediately state orally whether it/he
intends to appeal said ruling. The said
intent to appeal shall be stated in the
minutes of the canvassing.21
● If a party manifests its intent to appeal, the
board of canvassers shall set aside the
return and proceed to rule on the other
contested returns. When all the contested
returns have been ruled upon by it, the
board of canvassers shall suspend the
canvass and shall make an appropriate
report to the Commission, copy furnished
the parties.22
● The board of canvassers shall not proclaim
any candidate as winner unless authorized
by the Commission after the latter has
ruled on the objections brought to it on
appeal by the losing party and any
proclamation made in violation hereof
shall be void ab initio, unless the contested
returns will not adversely affect the
results of the election.23
● Procedure in Disposition of Contested
Election Returns:
(a) Any candidate, political party or
coalition of political parties
contesting the inclusion or
exclusion in the canvass of any
election returns on any of the
grounds authorized under Article
XX or Sections 234, 235 and 236
of Article XIX of the Omnibus
Election Code shall submit their
oral objection to the chairman of
the board of canvassers at the
time the questioned return is
presented for inclusion in the
canvass. Such objection shall be
recorded in the minutes of the
canvass.
(b) Upon receipt of any such
objection, the board of canvassers
shall automatically defer the
canvass of the contested returns
and shall proceed to canvass the
returns which are not contested
by any party.
20 Id.
21 Omnibus Election Code, section 245.
22 Id.
23 Id.
 (c) Simultaneous with the oral
objection, the objecting party
shall also enter his objection in
the form for written objections to
be prescribed by the Commission.
Within twenty-four (24) hours
from and after the presentation of
such an objection, the objecting
party shall submit the evidence in
support of the objection, which
shall be attached to the form for
written objections. Within the
same period of twenty-four (24)
hours after presentation of the
objection, any party may file a
written and verified opposition to
the objection in the form also to
be prescribed by the Commission,
attaching thereto supporting
evidence, if any. The board shall
not entertain any objection or
opposition unless reduced to
writing in the prescribed forms.
The evidence attached to the
objection or opposition,
submitted by the parties, shall be
immediately and formally
admitted into the record of the
board by the chairman affixing his
-dence, the board shall take up the
contested returns, consider the
written objections thereto and
opposition, if any, and summarily
and immediately rule thereon.
The board shall enter its ruling on
the prescribed form and
authenticate the same by the
signatures of its members.
(d) Any party adversely affected by
the ruling of the board shall
immediately inform the board if
he intends to appeal said ruling.
The board shall enter said
information in the minutes of the
canvass, set aside the returns and
proceed to consider the other
returns.
(e) After all the uncontested returns
have been canvassed and the
contested returns ruled upon it,
the board shall suspend the
canvass. Within forty-eight (48)
hours therefrom, any party
24 RA 7166, section 20.
adversely affected by the ruling
may file with the board a written
and verified notice of appeal; and
within an unextendible period of
five (5) days thereafter, an appeal
may be taken to the Commission.
(f) Immediately upon receipt of the
notice of appeal, the board shall
make an appropriate report to the
Commission, elevating therewith
the complete records and
evidence submitted in the
canvass, and furnishing the
parties with copies of the report.
(g) On the basis of the records and
evidence elevated to it by the
board, the Commission shall
decide summarily the appeal
within seven (7) days from
receipt of said records and
evidence. Any appeal brought
before the Commission on the
ruling of the board, without the
accomplished forms and the
evidence appended thereto, shall
be summarily dismissed. The
decision of the Commission shall
be executory after the lapse of
seven (7) days from receipt
thereof by the losing party.
(h) The board of canvassers shall not
proclaim any candidate as winner
unless authorized by the
Commission after the latter has
ruled on the objections brought to
it on appeal by the losing party.
Any proclamation made in
violation hereof shall be void ab
initio, unless the contested
returns will not adversely affect
the results of the election.24
Summary proceedings before the Commission
● All pre-proclamation controversies shall
be heard summarily by the Commission
after due notice and hearing, and its
decisions shall be executory after the lapse
of five days from receipt by the losing
party of the decision of the Commission,
unless restrained by the Supreme Court.25
25 Omnibus Election Code, section 246.
Partial proclamation
● Notwithstanding the pendency of any pre-
proclamation controversy, the
Commission may, motu proprio or upon
the filing of a verified petition and after
due notice and hearing, order the
proclamation of other winning candidates
whose election will not be affected by the
outcome of the controversy.26
● Notwithstanding the pendency of any pre-
proclamation controversy, the
Commission may summarily order the
proclamation of other winning candidates
whose election will not be affected by the
outcome of the controversy.27
Effect of filing petition to annul or to suspend
the proclamation
● The filing with the Commission of a
petition to annul or to suspend the
proclamation of any candidate shall
suspend the running of the period within
which to file an election protest or quo
warranto proceedings.28
Pre-proclamation cases not allowed in
elections for President, Vice-President,
Senator, and Member of the House of
Representatives
● For purposes of the elections for
President, Vice-President, Senator and
Member of the House of Representatives,
no pre-proclamation cases shall be
allowed on matters relating to the
preparation, transmission, receipt,
custody and appreciation of the election
returns or the certificates of canvass, as
the case may be.29
● However, this does not preclude the
authority of the appropriate canvassing
body motu proprio or upon written
complaint of an interested person to
correct manifest errors in the certificate of
canvass or election returns before it.30
● Questions affecting the composition or
proceedings of the board of canvassers
may be initiated in the board or directly
with the Commission in accordance with
Section 19 hereof.31
26 Id. at section 247.
27 RA 7166, section 21.
28 Omnibus Election Code, section 248.
29 RA 7166, section 15.
30 Id.
● Any objection on the election returns
before the city or municipal board of
canvassers, or on the municipal
certificates of canvass before the
provincial boards of canvassers or district
boards of canvassers in Metro Manila Area,
shall be specifically noted in the minutes of
their respective proceedings.32
Pre-proclamation Cases Involving Provincial,
City and Municipal Offices
● Pre-proclamation cases involving
provincial, city and municipal offices shall
be allowed and shall be governed by
Section 17, 18, 19, 20, 21 and 22 hereof.33
● All pre-proclamation cases pending before
the Commission shall be deemed
terminated at the beginning of the term of
the office involved and the rulings of the
boards of canvassers concerned shall be
deemed affirmed, without prejudice to the
filing of a regular election protest by the
aggrieved party. However, proceedings
may continue when on the basis of the
evidence thus far presented, the
Commission determines that the petition
appears meritorious and accordingly
issues an order for the proceeding to
continue or when an appropriate order
has been issued by the Supreme Court in a
petition for certiorari.34
Cases on Pre-proclamation Controversy
● Not every question bearing on or arising
from the elections may constitute a ground
for a pre-proclamation controversy.35
● In a pre-proclamation controversy, the
Commission on Elections is restricted to
an examination of the election returns and
is without jurisdiction to go beyond or
behind the election returns and to
investigate election irregularities. For as
long as the election returns appear to be
authentic and duly accomplished on their
faces, the Board of Canvassers cannot look
beyond or behind the election returns in
31 Id.
32 Id.
33 Id. at section 16.
34 Id.
35 Suhuri v. COMELEC, 602 SCRA 633, 641.
 order to verify allegations of irregularities
in the casting or counting of votes.36
● Section 243 of the Omnibus Election Code
limits a pre-proclamation controversy to
the questions enumerated therein. The
enumeration is restrictive and exclusive.37
● Pre-proclamation controversies refer to
matters relating to the preparation,
transmission, receipt, custody and
appearance of election returns and
certificates of canvass.38
● As Section 15 of Republic Act No. 7166 was
then worded, it would appear that any pre-
proclamation case relating to the
preparation, transmission, receipt,
custody and appreciation of election
returns or certificates of canvass, was
prohibited in elections for President, Vice-
President, Senators and Members of the
House of Representatives. The prohibition
aims to avoid delay in the proclamation of
the winner in the election, which delay
might result in a vacuum in these sensitive
posts. Proceedings which may delay the
proclamation of the winning candidate
beyond the date set for the beginning of his
term of office must be avoided,
considering that the effect of said delay is,
in the case of national offices for which
there is no hold over, to leave the office
without any incumbent. The law,
nonetheless, recognizes an exception and
allows the canvassing body motu proprio
or an interested person to file a written
complaint for the correction of manifest
errors in the election returns or
certificates of canvass even in elections for
President, Vice-President, Senators and
Members of the House of Representatives,
for the simple reason that the correction of
manifest error will not prolong the
process of canvassing nor delay the
proclamation of the winner in the election.
To be manifest, the errors must appear on
the face of the certificates of canvass or
election returns sought to be corrected
and/or objections thereto must have been
made before the board of canvassers and
specifically noted in the minutes of their
respective proceedings. The law likewise
36 Id. at 642-643.
37 Id. at 642.
38 Pimentel III vs. Commission on Elections, 548 SCRA
169, 181.
permits pre-proclamation cases in
elections for President, Vice-President,
Senators and Members of the House of
Representatives, when these cases
question the composition or proceedings
of the board of canvassers before the
board itself or the COMELEC, since such
cases do not directly relate to the
certificate of canvass or election returns.39
● Republic Act No. 9369 significantly
amended Section 15 of Republic Act No.
7166 by adding an excepting phrase to the
general prohibition against pre-
proclamation controversies in elections
for President, Vice-President, Senators
and Members of the House of
Representatives. According to the
amended Section 15, no pre-proclamation
cases on matters relating to the
preparation, transmission, receipt,
custody and appreciation of election
returns or the certificates of canvass shall
be allowed in elections for President, Vice-
President, Senators and Members of the
House of Representatives, except as
provided by Section 30 of the same
statute.40
● By virtue of the amendments introduced
by Republic Act No. 9369 to Sections 15
and 30 of Republic Act No. 7166, pre-
proclamation cases involving the
authenticity and due execution of
certificates of canvass are now allowed in
elections for President, Vice-President,
and Senators. The intention of Congress to
treat a case falling under Section 30 of
Republic Act No. 7166, as amended by
Republic Act No. 9369, as a pre-
proclamation case is apparent in the
fourth paragraph of the said provision
which adopts and applies to such a case
the same procedure provided under
Sections 17, 18, 19 and 20 of Republic Act
No. 7166 on pre-proclamation
controversies.41
● As a general rule, candidates and
registered political parties involved in an
election are allowed to file pre-
proclamation cases before the COMELEC.
Pre-proclamation cases refer to any
39 Id. at 184-185.
40 Id. at 186.
41 Id. at 189.
 question pertaining to or affecting the
proceedings of the board of canvassers
which may be raised by any candidate or
by any registered political party or
coalition of political parties before the
board or directly with the Commission, or
any matter raised under Sections 233, 234,
235 and 236 in relation to the preparation,
transmission, receipt, custody and
appreciation of election returns. The
COMELEC has exclusive jurisdiction over
all pre-proclamation controversies. As an
exception, however, to the general rule,
Section 15 of Republic Act (RA) 7166
prohibits candidates in the presidential,
vice-presidential, senatorial and
congressional elections from filing pre-
proclamation cases.42
● The authority to rule on petitions for
correction of manifest error is vested in
the COMELEC en banc. Section 7 of Rule 27
of the 1993 COMELEC Rules of Procedure
provides that if the error is discovered
before proclamation, the board of
canvassers may motu proprio, or upon
verified petition by any candidate, political
party, organization or coalition of political
parties, after due notice and hearing,
correct the errors committed. The
aggrieved party may appeal the decision of
the board to the Commission and said
appeal shall be heard and decided by the
Commission en banc. Section 5, however,
of the same rule states that a petition for
correction of manifest error may be filed
directly with the Commission en banc
provided that such errors could not have
been discovered during the canvassing
despite the exercise of due diligence and
proclamation of the winning candidate
had already been made.43
● After a proclamation has been made a pre-
proclamation case before the COMELEC is,
logically, no longer viable. The rule admits
of exceptions, however, as where: (a) the
board of canvassers was improperly
constituted; (b) quo warranto was not the
proper remedy; (c) what was filed was not
really a petition for quo warranto or an
election protest but a petition to annul a
proclamation; (d) the filing of a quo
42 Sandoval v. COMELEC, 323 SCRA 403, 417.
43 Id. at 419.
44 Laodenio vs. COMELEC, 276 SCRA 705, 713-714.
warranto petition or an election protest
was expressly made without prejudice to
the pre-proclamation controversy or was
made ad cautelam; and, (e) the
proclamation was null and void.44
Election Contest, in general
● “Election contests” would refer to
adversary proceedings by which matters
involving the title or claim of title to an
elective office, made before or after
proclamation of the winner, is settled
whether or not the contestant is claiming
the office in dispute and in the case of
elections of barangay officials, it is
restricted to proceedings after the
proclamation of the winners as no pre-
proclamation controversies are allowed. 45
● The jurisdiction of the COMELEC is over
popular elections, the elected officials of
which are determined through the will of
the electorate.46
● It may be stated as a general rule
recognized by all the courts, that statutes
providing for election contests are to be
liberally construed, to the end that the will
of the people in the choice of public
officers may not be defeated by merely
technical objections. To that end
immaterial defects in pleadings should be
disregarded and necessary and proper
amendments should be allowed as
promptly as possible.47
Election Contests for President and Vice-
President
● The returns of every election for President
and Vice-President, duly certified by the
board of canvassers of each province or
city, shall be transmitted to the Congress,
directed to the President of the Senate.
Upon receipt of the certificates of canvass,
the President of the Senate shall, not later
than thirty days after the day of the
election, open all certificates in the
presence of the Senate and the House of
Representatives in joint public session,
and the Congress, upon determination of
the authenticity and due execution thereof
45 Taule v. Santos, 200 SCRA 512, 519-520.
46 Id. at 519.
47 Galang v. Miranda, 35 Phil. 269, 271-272.
 in the manner provided by law, canvass
the votes.48
● The person having the highest number of
votes shall be proclaimed elected, but in
case two or more shall have an equal and
highest number of votes, one of them shall
forthwith be chosen by the vote of a
majority of all the Members of both Houses
of the Congress, voting separately.49
● The Congress shall promulgate its rules for
the canvassing of the certificates.50
● The Supreme Court, sitting en banc, shall
be the sole judge of all contests relating to
the election, returns, and qualifications of
the President or Vice-President, and may
promulgate its rules for the purpose.51
Presidential Electoral Tribunal
● The Tribunal shall have the following
inherent powers:
(a) Preserve and enforce in
proceedings before it or before
any of its Divisions or officials
acting under its authority;
(b) Administer or cause to be
administered oaths in any contest
before it, and in any order matter
where it may be necessary in the
exercise of its powers;
(c) Compel the attendance of
witnesses and production of
evidence in any contest before it.
(d) Compel obedience to its decisions,
resolutions, orders and
processes;
(e) Control its processes and amend
its decisions, resolutions or
orders to make them conformable
to law and justice;
(f) Authorize a copy of a lost or
destroyed pleading or other
paper to be filed and used instead
of the original copy thereof, and to
restore and supply deficiencies in
its records and proceedings; and
(g) Promulgate its own rules of
procedure and amend or revise
the same.52
48 1987 Philippine Constitution, art. 7, section 4.
49 Phil. Const. art. 7, section 4.
50 Phil. Const. art. 7, section 4.
51 Phil. Const. art. 7, section 4.
52 A.M. No. 10-4-29-SC, rule 8.
● The Tribunal shall be the sole judge of all
contests relating to the election, returns,
and qualifications of the President or Vice-
President of the Philippines.53
● An election contest is initiated by the filing
of an election protest or a petition for quo
warranto against the President or Vice-
President. An election protest shall not
include a petition for quo warranto. A
petition for quo warranto shall not include
an election protest.54
● The registered candidate for President or
Vice-President of the Philippines who
received the second or third highest
number of votes may contest the election
of the President or Vice-President, as the
case may be, by filing a verified election
protest with the Clerk of the Presidential
Electoral Tribunal within thirty days after
the proclamation of the winner.55
● A verified for quo warranto contesting the
election of the President or Vice-President
on the ground of ineligibility or disloyalty
to the Republic of the Philippines may filed
by any registered voter who has voted in
the election concerned within ten days
after the proclamation of the winner.56
● Contents of the protest or petition:
(A) An election protest or petition for
quo warranto shall commonly
state the following facts:
(a) the position involved;
(b) the date of proclamation;
and
(c) the number of votes
credited to the parties
per the proclamation.
(B) A quo warranto petition shall as
state:
(a) the facts giving the
petitioner standing to the
file the petition;
(b) the legal requirements
for the office and the
disqualifications
prescribed by law;
(c) the protestee's ground
for ineligibility or the
specific acts of disloyalty
53 Id. at rule 13.
54 Id. at rule 14.
55 Id. at rule 15.
56 Id. at rule 16.
 to the Republic of the
Philippines.
(C) An election protest shall also
state:
(a) that the protestant was a
candidate who had duly
filed a certificate of
candidacy and had been
voted for the same office;
(b) the total number of
precincts of the region,
province, or city
concerned;
(c) the protested precincts
and votes of the parties to
the protest in such
precincts per the
Statement of Votes By
Precincts, or if the votes
of the parties are not
specified, an explanation
why the votes are not
specified ; and
(d) a detailed specification of
the acts or omissions
complained of showing
the electoral frauds,
anomalies, or
irregularities in the
protested precincts.57
● An election protest or petition for quo
warranto may be summarily dismissed by
the Tribunal without requiring the
protestee or respondent to answer if, inter
alia:
(a) the protest or petition is
insufficient in form and
substance;
(b) the protest or petition is filed
beyond the periods provided in
Rules 15 and 16;
(c) the filing fee is not paid within the
periods provided in Rules 15 and
16;
(d) the cash deposit or the first Two
Hundred Thousand Pesos (P
200,000.00) is not paid within ten
days after the filing of the protest;
and
57 Id. at rule 17.
58 A.M. No. 10-4-29-SC, rule 21.
59 Phil. Const. art. 6, section 17.
(e) the protest or petition or copies
and their annexes filed with the
Tribunal are not clearly legible.58
Election Contests for Members of Congress
● The Senate and the House of
Representatives shall each have an
Electoral Tribunal which shall be the sole
judge of all contests relating to the
election, returns, and qualifications of
their respective Members.59
● Each Electoral Tribunal shall be composed
of nine Members, three of whom shall be
Justices of the Supreme Court to be
designated by the Chief Justice, and the
remaining six shall be Members of the
Senate or the House of Representatives, as
the case may be, who shall be chosen on
the basis of proportional representation
from the political parties and the parties or
organizations registered under the party-
list system represented therein.60
● The senior Justice in the Electoral Tribunal
shall be its Chairman.61
● The Electoral Tribunals shall be
constituted within thirty days after the
Senate and the House of Representatives
shall have been organized with the
election of the President and the
Speaker.62
Cases on Election Contest
● The purpose of an election protest is to
ascertain whether the candidate
proclaimed elected by the board of
canvassers is the true and lawful choice of
the electorate. Such a proceeding is usually
instituted on the theory that the election
returns, which are deemed prima facie to
be true reports of how the electorate voted
on election day and which serve as the
basis for proclaiming the winning
candidate, do not accurately reflect the
true will of the voters due to alleged
irregularities that attended the counting of
ballots. In a protest prosecuted on such a
theory, the protestant ordinarily prays
that the official count as reflected in the
election returns be set aside in favor of a
revision and recount of the ballots, the
results of which should be made to prevail
60 Phil. Const. art. 6, section 17.
61 Phil. Const. art. 6, section 17.
62 Phil. Const. art. 6, section 19.
 over those reflected in the returns
pursuant to the doctrine that “in an
election contest where what is involved is
the number of votes of each candidate, the
best and most conclusive evidence are the
ballots them-selves.” It should never be
forgotten, though, that the superior status
of the ballots as evidence of how the
electorate voted presupposes that these
were the very same ballots actually cast
and counted in the elections. Thus, it has
been held that before the ballots found in
a box can be used to set aside the returns,
the court (or the Comelec as the case may
be) must be sure that it has before it the
same ballots deposited by the voters.63
● An Election Protest proposes to oust the
winning candidate from office. It is strictly
a contest between the defeated and the
winning candidates, based on the grounds
of electoral frauds or irregularities. It aims
to determine who between them has
actually obtained the majority of the legal
votes cast and, therefore, entitled to hold
the office.64
● While the right to a public office is
personal and exclusive to the public
officer, an election protest is not purely
personal and exclusive to the protestant or
to the protestee such that the death of
either would oust the court of all authority
to continue the protest proceedings.65
● An election contest, after all, involves not
merely conflicting private aspirations but
is imbued with paramount public
interests.66
● Death of the protestant neither constitutes
a ground for the dismissal of the contest
nor ousts the trial court of its jurisdiction
to decide the election contest.67
Election Contests for Regional, Provincial, and
City Officials
● The Commission on Elections shall be the
sole judge of all contests relating to the
elections, returns, and qualifications of all
xxx elective regional, provincial and city
officials.68
63 Rosal vs. COMELEC, 518 SCRA 473, 487-488.
64 Abayon vs. HRET, 791 SCRA 242, 258.
65 De Castro vs. COMELEC, 267 SCRA 806, 809.
66 Id.
67 Id. at 810.
● A sworn petition contesting the election of
any regional, provincial or city official shall
be filed with the Commission by any
candidate who has duly filed a certificate
of candidacy and has been voted for the
same office, within ten days after the
proclamation of the results of the election.
ELECTION CONTESTS FOR MUNICIPAL
OFFICIALS
● A sworn petition contesting the election of
a municipal officer shall be filed with the
proper regional trial court by any
candidate who has duly filed a certificate
of candidacy and has been voted for the
same office, within ten days after
proclamation of results of the election.69
ELECTION CONTESTS FOR BARANGAY
OFFICIALS
● A sworn petition contesting the election of
a barangay officer shall be filed with the
proper municipal or metropolitan trial
court by any candidate who has duly filed
a certificate of candidacy and has been
voted for the same office, within ten days
after the proclamation of the results of the
election.The trial court shall decide the
election protest within fifteen days after
the filing thereof. The decision of the
municipal or metropolitan trial court may
be appealed within ten days from receipt
of a copy thereof by the aggrieved party to
the regional trial court which shall decide
the case within thirty days from its
submission, and whose decision shall be
final.70
Petition for Quo Warranto
● “Any voter contesting the election of any
Member of the Batasang Pambansa,
regional, provincial, or city officer on the
ground of ineligibility or of disloyalty to
the Republic of the Philippines shall file a
sworn petition for quo warranto with the
Commission within ten days after the
proclamation of the results of the
election.”71
68Section 249, Omnibus Election Code.
69 Id. Section 251.
70 Id. Section 251.
71 Id. Section 253.
Cases on Petition for Quo Warranto
● A petition for quo warranto may be filed
only on the grounds of ineligibility and
disloyalty to the Republic of the
Philippines. A petition for quo warranto in
the HRET is directed against one who has
been duly elected and proclaimed for
having obtained the highest number of
votes but whose eligibility is in question at
the time of such proclamation.72
● The present rule is as long as there is a
proclamation made by the canvassing
board or the COMELEC, such declaration of
the winner results in a valid election that
applies and corresponds to the service
actually rendered by the proclaimed
official. This substantially complies with
the prescribed valid election regardless of
whether the nullification came prior to or
after the term’s expiration. The reason is
the election of the proclaimed winner to
the local government position is legal and
valid until annulled in the protest or quo
warranto proceedings.73
JUDICIAL COUNTING OF VOTES IN ELECTION
CONTEST
 Where allegations in a protest or counter-
protest so warrant
 Where in the opinion of the court the
interests of justice so require
 It shall immediately order the books of
voters, ballot boxes and their keys, ballots
and other documents used in the election
be brought before it and that the ballots
be examined and the votes recounted. 74
APPEALS
 Any decision of the Regional Trial Court75
 Quo Warranto petitions filed in election
contests affecting municipal officers 76
 The aggrieved party may appeal to the
Court of Appeals.
 No motion for reconsideration shall be
entertained by the court.
 It shall be decided within 60 days after the
case has been submitted for decision. 77
72 Codilla, Sr. vs. De Venecia, 393 SCRA 639, 680.
73 Rivera III vs. Commission on Elections, 523 SCRA 41,
69.
74 Section 255 Omnibus Election Code
75 Id. at Section 251
76 Id. at Section 253
QUO WARRANTO
“The writ of quo warranto is the remedy, among
other things, by which one who usurps, intrudes
into, or unlawfully holds or exercises a public civil
office or a franchise within the Philippine Islands,
or an office in a corporation created by the
authority of the Government of the Philippine
Islands, is ousted from such public civil office,
franchise, etc.”78
It refers to an election contest relating to the
qualifications of an elective official on the ground
of ineligibility or disloyalty to the Republic of the
Philippines. The issue is whether respondent
possesses all the qualifications and none of the
disqualifications prescribed by law. 79
 An action for the usurpation of a public
office, position or franchise may be
commenced by a verified petition brought
in the name of the Republic of the
Philippines against:
(a) A person who usurps, intrudes into, or
unlawfully holds or exercises a public office,
position or franchise;
(b) A public officer who does or suffers an act
which, by the provision of law, constitutes a ground
for the forfeiture of his office; or
(c) An association which acts as a corporation
within the Philippines without being legally
incorporated or without lawful authority so to act.
80
“The fact that the candidate who obtained the
highest number of votes is later declared to be
disqualified or not eligible for the office to which he
was elected does not necessarily entitle the
candidate who obtained the second highest
number of votes to be declared the winner of the
elective office. The votes cast for a dead,
disqualified, or non-eligible person may not be
valid the vote the winner into office or maintain
him there. However the absence of a statute which
clearly asserts a contrary politics and legislative
policy on the matter, if the votes were cast in the
sincere belief that the candidate was alive,
qualified, or eligible, they should not be treated as
stray, void or meaningless.” 81
77 Id. at Section 256
78 Hernandp vs Sembrano, G.R. No. 4555. March 12, 1909
79 AM. No. 07-4-15-SC, Rule 1, Sec. 3 (e)
80 Rule 66 of Rules of Court
81 Abella vs Commission on Elections, 201 SCRA 253
 personal stake of the contestants which generates
DECISION IN THE COMMISSION feuds and discords. Above all is the public interest.
 The Commission on Election shall decide Title to public elective office must not be left long
all election cases brought before it within under cloud. Efficiency of public administration
90 days from the date of their submission should not be impaired. It is thus understandable
for decision. that pitfalls which may retard the determination of
 The decision shall become final 30 days election contests should be avoided. Courts should
after receipt of judgment82 heed the imperative need for dispatch. Obstacles
and technicalities which fetter the will of the
PREFERENTIAL DISPOSITION OF ELECTION people should not stand in the way of a prompt
CONTEST IN COURTS 83 termination of elections contests.”86
 The Court will give preference to election
contests over all other cases EXCEPT those
of habeas corpus.
 It will hear the case within 30 days from its
submission and decide upon it within 6
months after filing the case.
 Actual or compensatory damages may be
granted in election contests or quo
warrranto proceedings.84

 The clerk of court and the corresponding

official in the Commission before whom an
election contest or a quo warranto
proceeding has been instituted or where
the appeal of said case has been taken shall
notify immediately the President of the
final disposition thereof.

 In election contests involving provincial,

city. Municipal or barangay offices, notice
of such final disposition shall also be sent
to the secretary of the local sanggunian
concerned. If the decision be that none of
the parties has been legally elected, said
official shall certify such decision to the
President and to the Commission.85

Rationale:
“The statutory scheme clearly mapped out in the
Revised Election Code is that proceedings in
election protests are special and expeditious. The
periods for filing pleadings are short. Trials are
swift. Decisions in municipal election contests are
to be handed down in six months after the protest
is presented. Preferential disposition of election
contests except as to habeas corpus proceedings is
set forth in the law. The proceedings should not be
encumbered by delays. All of these are because the
term of elective office is likewise short. There is the

82 Id. at Section 257 86Estrada vs Sto. Domingo, G.R. No. L-30570, July 29,
83 Id. at Section 258 1969
84 Id. at Section 259
85 Id. at Setion 260