Maliksi v.

COMELEC
G.R. No. 203302 (Resolution)
[April 11, 2013]
709 PHIL 265-306

Facts:
 Saquilayan and Maliksi both run for mayor of Imus in 2010.
 Maliksi claimed before the RTC (election protest) that there were irregularities in the vote
counting.
 The RTC held a revision and declared Maliksi as the duly-elected Mayor.
 The COMELEC First Division decided to recount the ballots without notifying both candidates
o They used the printouts of the ballot images
 The COMELEC First Division nullified the RTC decision on declaring Maliksi as Mayor, and had
Saquilayan declared as the duly-elected Mayor.
 Maliksi argued that the COMELEC should not have used the ballot images as they were
secondary evidence, and that teir use was not warranted under the law.
Issue:
 Are the ballot images considered as secondary evidence?
Ruling:
 The picture images of the ballots are electronic documents that are regarded as the equivalents
of the original official ballots themselves.
 The two documents — the official ballot and its picture image — are considered "original
documents" simply means that both of them are given equal probative weight. In short, when
either is presented as evidence, one is not considered as weightier than the other.
 While the SC ruled that ballot images and original ballots are both considered original
documents, they still decided to remand the case to the COMELEC because the latter violated
Maliksi’s constitutional right to due process when it decided not to inform the parties of its
decision to recount the ballots.

Rationale:
 "The picture images of the ballots, as scanned and recorded by the PCOS, are likewise 'official
ballots' that faithfully capture in electronic form the votes cast by the voter. As such, the
printouts thereof are the functional equivalent of the paper ballots filled out by the voters and,
thus, may be used for purposes of revision of votes in an electoral protest.” (Vinzons-Chato v.
HRET)