The Supreme Court (SC) on Tuesday ordered the Commission on Elections (Comelec) to accept the certificate of candidacy (COC) of Chito Bulatao Balintay and include his name in the official ballots for Zambales governor in the 2025 elections.
In a statement, the SC granted the petition of Balintay, reversing a Comelec resolution.
Balintay, a member of the indigenous peoples of Zambales, was advised to complete his COC, but it was already three minutes past the 5:00 p.m. deadline by the time he returned.
The SC ruled that the Comelec gravely abused its discretion when it did not allow Balintay to file his COC holding that it should re-examine whether its rules serve the interest of justice and fair play.
Elections are not conducted under laboratory conditions, and the Comelec must be prepared to make quick decisions in response to unforeseen circumstances that could undermine or subvert the will of the voters, the SC explained.
Given these considerations, along with Balintay’s unique circumstances, the SC found that the Comelec’s strict application of its rules was unjustified, warranting the reversal of its decision.
The SC cited Section 37 of Comelec Resolution No. 11045 which provides that incomplete COCs will neither be accepted nor stamped “received,” even if submitted on time.
In January, the SC issued a temporary restraining order (TRO), preventing the Comelec from enforcing its decision rejecting Balintay’s application.
Editor’s Note: This is an updated article. Originally posted with the headline “SC allows Aeta leader to run as Zambales governor.”
