ELECTION AND

POLITICAL PARTIES
 ARTICLE V
SUFFRAGE
Section 1. Suffrage may be exercised by all citizens of the Philippines not
otherwise disqualified by law, who are at least eighteen years of age, and who
shall have resided in the Philippines for at least one year, and in the place
wherein they propose to vote, for at least six months immediately preceding the
election. No literacy, property, or other substantive requirement shall be imposed
on the exercise of suffrage.
Section 2. The Congress shall provide a system for securing the secrecy and
sanctity of the ballot as well as a system for absentee voting by qualified Filipinos
abroad.
The Congress shall also design a procedure for the disabled and the illiterates to
vote without the assistance of other persons. Until then, they shall be allowed to
vote under existing laws and such rules as the Commission on Elections may
promulgate to protect the secrecy of the ballot.
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In the Philippines, elections are protected in the 1987
Constitution. According to the 1987 Constitution regular
elections happen every 2nd Monday of May and the elected
officials’ term of office will start on 30th of June on the same
year of the election. Moreover, according to the 1987
Constitution, the term of office of the President is 6 years, the
Senate is 6 years, members of the House of Representative
is 3 years and local other local officials is 3 years.

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The following are some of the election laws in
the Philippines:
Omnibus Election Code of the Philippines dated
December 3, 1985. It shall govern all election of
public officers and, to the extent appropriate, all
referenda and plebiscites. Furthermore, it states that
the election period shall commence ninety days
before the day of the election and shall end thirty
days thereafter.
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Republic Act No. 7056. It is an act provided for the
national and local elections in 1992, paving the way for
synchronized and simultaneous elections beginning
1995, and authorizing appropriations therefor.
Republic Act No. 7166 dated November 26, 1991 —
It is an act provided for synchronized national and
local elections and for electoral reforms,
authorizing appropriations thereof, and for other
purposes. 5
Republic Act No. 8436 dated December 22, 1997 —It is an
act authorizing the commission on elections to use an
automated election system in the May 11, 1998 national or
local elections and in subsequent national and local electoral
exercises, providing funds thereof and for other purposes.

Republic Act No. 7941 - Party-List System Act and

COMELEC Resolution No. 2847 In Re: Rules and
Regulations Governing the Election of the Party-List
Representatives through the Party-List System.
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Republic Act No. 9189 dated February 13, 2003
— It is an act provided for a system of overseas
absentee voting by qualified citizens of the
Philippines abroad, appropriating funds therefor,
and for other purposes.

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Republic Act No. 9369 dated January 23, 2007,
Amending RA 8436 - It is an act amending republic act no.
8436, entitled “an act authorizing the commission on
elections to use an automated election system im the May
11, 1998 national or local elections and in subsequent
national and local electoral exercises, to encourage
transparency, credibility, fairness and accuracy of
elections, amending for the purpose Batas Pambansa Blg.
881, as amended, Republic act no. 7166 and other related
elections laws, providing funds therefor and for other
purposes.” 8
• Elections in the Philippines are directed by the Commission on
Elections . COMELEC enforces and administers “all laws and
regulations relative to the conduct of elections, plebiscites,
initiatives, referendums, and recalls (ADB, 2005).”
• The first election in the country was held in 1899, under American
supervision and in November 10, 1902, the first election law was
enacted through Republic Act No. 502. During those years, election
was done manually, which led to several violent related activities like
ballot snatching, death of poll watchers and election officers, delay in
the outcome of election, ghost voter, flying voters and others.
Because of these, election modernization program was created
particularly, it includes the computerization of the voters list, and the
automation of the counting and canvassing system.
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The Electoral
System
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 Party System
▰ Political Parties refer to an organized group of persons pursuing
the same ideology, political ideas or platforms of government
and includes its branches and divisions (RA 7941). Political
parties existed in order to nominate as many ‘of its members in
the government. Once they are elected, they are tasked to push
the goals of the party by making laws. According to Weissenbach
(2010) one of the peculiar functions of parties in party
democracies is to make politics more accessible or ‘user-
friendly’ for citizens.”
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 Party System
▰ Filipinos see political parties as a tool of politicians to advance
their own interest and not the interest of the people (IFES,
1995; ADB, 2005). In the Philippines, most of its members
come from the elite class and have been in politics, or the
family, for several decades. One important description of
political parties in the Philippines is the shifting character of its
members and leaders, and the absence of ideological or
programmatic differences between parties (ADB, 2005).
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▰ Section 6, article IX of the 1987 Constitution states that “a free
and open party system shall be allowed to evolve according to the
free choice of the people, subject to the provisions of this article.”
This provision became the basis of the shift from a two party
system to a multi-party system. The Philippines have a multi-party
system. This means that several political parties can have control
over the government. Below are the political parties in the
Philippines based on the COMELEC Resolution 9661, Section 4
dated March 22, 2013.
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▰ According to Comelec Resolution No.
10787, the Partido Demokratiko Pilipino–
Lakas ng Bayan (PDP-Laban) was
declared as the dominant majority party
while the Nacionalista Party (NP) is the
dominant minority party.
https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1173760
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▰ "The Commission on Elections, by virtue of the powers vested
in it by the Constitution, the Omnibus Election Code, and
other pertinent election laws, resolves to promulgate the
criteria and evaluation process for the accreditation of the
dominant majority party, dominant minority party, 10 major
national parties," it said in its decision on May 4.

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▰ Those that were considered as the 10 major political parties are
the Liberal Party (LP), Aksyon Demokratiko (Aksyon),
Nationalist People's Coalition (NPC), Lakas-Christian Muslim
Demokrats (Lakas-CMD), Partido para sa Demokratikong
Reporma (PDR), the National Unity Party (NUP), Laban ng
Demokratikong Pilipino (LDP), Partido Federal ng Pilipinas
(PFP), Akbayan Citizens Action Party (Akbayan), and United
Nationalist Alliance (UNA).
https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1173760
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17
 Party-List System
▰ Party-list system is a proportional representation
wherein people will vote for a party to represent them
in the House of Representatives. According to Fr.
Joaquin Bernas, party-list system gives opportunity to
the underprivileged sector to be represented in
Congress. Republic Act 7941 also known as the Party-
List System Act. Section 2 states that:
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“The State shall promote proportional representation in the election of
representatives to the House of Representatives through a party-list
system of registered national, regional and sectoral parties or
organizations or coalitions thereof, which will enable Filipino citizens
belonging to the marginalized and underrepresented sectors,
organizations and parties, and who lack well-defined political
constituencies but who could contribute to the formulation and enactment
of appropriate legislation that will benefit the nation as a whole, to
become members of the House of Representatives. Towards this end,
the State shall develop and guarantee a full, free and open party system
in order to attain the broadest possible representation of party, sectoral or
group interests in the House of Representatives by enhancing their
chances to compete for and win seats in the legislature, . and shall
provide the simplest scheme possible.” 19
 Moreover, the 1987 Constitution, Article VI, section 5
provided the scheme for the party-list system in the
Philippines:
(1) : The House of Representatives shall be composed of not
more than two hundred and fifty members, unless otherwise
fixed by law, who shall be elected from legislative districts
apportioned among the provinces, cities, and the Metropolitan
Manila area in accordance with the number of their respective
inhabitants, and on the basis of a uniform and progressive ratio,
and those who, as provided by law, shall be elected through a
party-list system of registered national, regional, and sectoral
parties or organizations.
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2) The party-list representatives shall constitute twenty per
centum of the total number of representatives including those
under the party list. For three consecutive terms after the
ratification of this Constitution, one half of the seats allocated
to party-list representatives shall be filled, as provided by law,
by selection or election from the labor, peasant, urban poor,
indigenous cultural communities, women, youth, and such
other sectors as may be provided by law, except the religious
sector.

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The party-list representatives shall
constitute twenty per centum (20%) of the
total number of the members of the House
of Representatives including those under
the party-list.
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1. Sectoral parties or organizations may either be
“marginalized and underrepresented or lacking in “well-
defined political constituencies.” It is enough that their
principal advocacy pertains to the special interests and
concerns of their sector. The sectors that are marginalized
and underrepresented include labor, peasant, fisherfolk,
urban poor, indigenous cultural communities, handicapped,
veterans, and overseas workers. The sectors that lack “well-
defined political constituencies” include professionals, the
elderly, women, and the youth.
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2. A majority of the members of the sectoral parties or organizations that
represent the “marginalized and underrepresented must belong to the
marginalized and underrepresented sector they represent. Similarly, a
majority of the members of sectoral parties or organizations that lack
“well-defined political constituencies” must belong to the sector they
represent. The nominees of sectoral parties or organizations that
represent the “marginalized and underrepresented” or that represent
those who lack “well-defined political constituencies,” either must belong
to their respective sectors, or must have a track record or advocacy for
their respective sectors. The nominees of national and regional Parties
or organizations must be bona-fide members of such parties or
Organizations.
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Republic Act No. 7491

▰ Sec. 11. Number of Party-List Representatives. The

party-list representatives shall constitute twenty percentum (20%) of the
total number of the members of the House of Representatives including
those under the party-list.For purposes of the May 1998 elections, the first
five (5) major political parties on the basis of party representation in the
House of Representatives at the start of the Tenth Congress of the
Philippines shall not be entitled to participate in the party-list system.In
determining the allocation of seats for the second vote, the following
procedure shall be observed:The parties, organizations, and coalitions shall
be ranked from the highest to the lowest based on the number of votes
garnered during the elections. 25
Republic Act No. 7491

▰ Sec. 11. Number of Party-List Representatives. The

parties, organizations, and coalitions receiving at least two percent (2%) of
the total votes cast for the party-list system shall be entitled to one seat
each: provided, that those garnering more than two percent (2%) of the
votes shall be entitled to additional seats in proportion to their total number
of votes: provided, finally, that each party, organization, or coalition shall
be entitled to not more than three (3) seats.

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ANY QUESTIONS?
ASSIGNMENT: ½

1. Who are the citizens of the Philippines

according to 1987 Constitution?
2. Differentiate the NATURAL BORN CITIZEN and
NATURALIZED CITIZEN.
3. Differentiate the Jus Soli and Jus Sanguinis.

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