This case is dated 1949 way back when the amended 1935 Constitution is still in effect.

This is
a special action for prohibition filed by Nacionalista Party and its senatorial candidates against
Vicente de Vera, the Chairman of the COMELEC to enjoin him from sitting or taking part in the
deliberations of the said Commission during the 1949 elections. In 1945, De Vera was
appointed a Member for a term of three years together with the first Commissioners to be
appointed under the 1935 amended Constitution. In 1947, the chairmanship of the Commission
became vacant by the death of the Chairman Jose Lopez Vito, and Vicente de Vera was
promoted to occupy this vacancy for the unexpired term of the former incumbent. For this
reason, Nacionalista Party state that De Vera’s appointment as Chairman is void ab initio
because he was already a member of the Commission when he was appointed its Chairman
and such appointment is in fact a reappointment which is expressly prohibited by the
Constitution.

The issue now is whether De Vera is qualified for appointment to being the Chairman of the
COMELEC.

Yes. His appointment is valid since he assumed office only for the unexpired term of the first
Chairman. Under Section 1, Art. X of the 1935 amended Constitution, it provides:
There shall be an independent Commission on Elections composed of a Chairman and
two other Members to be appointed by the President with the consent of the
Commission on Appointments, who shall hold office for a term of nine years and may
not be reappointed. Of the Members of the Commission first appointed, one shall hold
office for nine years, another for six years, and the third for three years. The Chairman
and the other Members of the Commission on Elections may be removed from office
only by impeachment in the manner provided in this Constitution.
It may then be said as a fair interpretation of the Constitution that appointment may be made in
favor of the Commissioner who has held office for less than nine years provided it does not
preclude the appointment of a new member every three years and provided further that the
reappointee’s term does not exceed nine years in all.
In connection to the present Constitution, Par. 2, Section 1 of Article IX-C explicitly provides:

(2) The Chairman and the Commissioners shall be appointed by the President with the consent
of the Commission on Appointments for a term of seven years without reappointment. Of those
first appointed, three Members shall hold office for seven years, two Members for five years,
and the last Members for three years, without reappointment. Appointment to any vacancy shall
be only for the unexpired term of the predecessor. In no case shall any Member be appointed
or designated in a temporary or acting capacity.