EIGHTEENTH CONGRESS OF THE ) 
REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES ) 
Third Regular Session 
)
SENATE 
S. No. 2461
E-FILED
December 6, 2021 ITT
CO
date:
. 01:07 pm
T tf.lE.
INDEX
Introduced by SENATOR LEILA M. DE LIMA
AN ACT
TO PREVENT ABUSE OF THE LAW GOVERNING THE SUBSTITUTION 
OF CANDIDATES FOR THE NATIONAL AND LOCAL ELECTIONS, 
AMENDING FOR THE PURPOSE SECTION 77 OF BA I AS PAMBANSA 
BLG. 881, OTHERWISE KNOWN AS THE OMNIBUS ELECTION CODE
EXPLANATORY NOTE
The Omnibus Election Code recognizes the importance of our party system and 
our political parties and therefore provides for an opportunity for political parties to 
replace their candidates before the elections.
Substitution of candidates is therefore a privilege accorded to political parties, 
and not to individual candidates. This is why substitution is accorded only to 
candidates of political parties, and not to independent candidates.
In light of this, it can readily be gleaned that the practice of substituting 
candidates with individuals who were not party members, but only belatedly, even up 
to the point of taking their oath as party member only on the date of the filing of the 
substitute certificate of candidacy, is an outright bastardization of the privilege of 
substitution accorded by the law to political parties. In this practice, political parties 
merely become the vehicle of prominent personalities shopping for a political party -- 
regardless of the fact that they then only become nominal party members, or party 
members by convenience — instead of candidates becoming the vehicle of political 
parties. It reinforces the impression on the character of our electoral exercises as being 
based on personalities instead of platforms and programs of government.


In order to facilitate this abuse, some parties resorted to fielding “placeholders”, 
or nominating persons who have no real intention to run for office, with the clear 
intent of substituting a different candidate during the period provided for by law. In 
order to prevent this from happening, the COM ELEC should be able to determine 
whether these “placeholders” are nuisance candidates in spite of substitution, which, 
in turn would void the substitution by the political party which nominated them.
This bill, amending Sec. 77 of the Omnibus Election Code and incorporating the 
modifications introduced by Sec. 12 of RA 9006 (Fair Elections Act) in light of election 
automation and printed ballots, seeks to concretize into legislation COMELEC Rules 
which already provide that substitution due to withdrawal must be more limited in 
scope than substitution due to death and disqualification. Thus, this bill allows 
substitution due to withdrawal only up to the period allowed by COMELEC before the 
printing of the ballots (as it is now the practice of COMELEC), and allows substitution 
due to death and disqualification up to mid-day of election day, provided that the 
substitute has the same surname as the candidate who died or was disqualified (in 
reiteration of Sec. 12 of RA 9006).
Most importantly however, the proposed amendments to Sec. 77 of the OEC in 
this bill makes it a paramount requirement that the substitute of a candidate who 
withdrew his candidacy must, at the very least, already be a member of the political 
party of the candidate withdrawing at the time of the filing of the latter’s certificate of 
candidacy. This would preclude the now prevalent practice of political parties filing 
nuisance candidacies of party members, but only as placeholders to strong and popular 
candidates of other political parties or who are otherwise independent, in anticipation 
that their political party will be the one eventually picked by the strong and prominent 
candidate, in what can only be considered as a “rigodon” of popular candidates among 
the various political parties.
This practice of last-minute party-hopping or party-hunting during and even 
after the original COMELEC period for filing certificates of candidacies has ended 
must stop now, as it puts to shame even ordinary and regular party-hopping done 
several months or weeks before the filing of certificates of candidacy.
This bill likewise makes the substitution without prejudice to any proceeding to 
declare the original candidates as nuisance candidates and to void any substitution of 
the same.


Early approval of this measure is earnestly sought.
LEILA M. DE LIMA


EIGHTEENTH CONGRESS OF THE ) 
REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES ) 
Third Regular Session 
)
SENATE 
S. No. 2461
5U.t.
r RECEIVED
E-FILED
— 
December6, 2021 mj
DATe.__----------L—
iC° tiv.ie:.01:07 pm
I Nub
Introduced by SENATOR LEILA M. DE LIMA
AN ACT
TO PREVENT ABUSE OF THE LAW GOVERNING THE SUBSTITUTION 
OF CANDIDATES FOR THE NATIONAL AND LOCAL ELECTIONS, 
AMENDING FOR THE PURPOSE SECTION 77 OF BATAS PAMBANSA 
BLG. 881, OTHERWISE KNOWN AS THE OMNIBUS ELECTION CODE
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the Philippines in 
Congress assembled:
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Section 1. Section 77 of Batas Pambansa Big. 881, s. 1985, otherwise known as
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the “Omnibus Election Code,”, is hereby amended to read as follows:
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Section 77. SUBSTITUTION OF [cjandidates in
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case of death, disqualification or withdrawal of another. - If
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after the last day for the filing of certificates of candidacy, an
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official candidate of a registered or accredited political party
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dies, withdraws or is disqualified for any cause, only a person
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belonging to, and certified by, the same political party may file
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a certificate of candidacy to replace the candidate who died,
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withdrew or was disqualified. The substitute candidate
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nominated by the political party concerned may file his
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certificate of candidacy for the office affected in accordance
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with the preceding sections not later than mid day of the-day
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of the election. If the death, withdrawal or-disqualificatieft
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should occur between the day before the election and mid -day
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of election day, said certificate-may be filed with any board of
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election inspectors in the political subdivision where he is-a


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candidratc, or, in the case-of candidates to be voted for ■by-4he
entire-electorate of the country, with-thc Com-mission.-
THE SUBSTITUTION IN CASE OF 
WITHDRAWAL SHALL BE MADE WITHIN THE 
PERIOD DESIGNATED BY COMELEC WHICH 
SHALL BE PRIOR TO THE PRINTING OF THE 
BALLOTS. THE PERIOD FOR SUBSTITUTION IN 
CASE OF DEATH OR DISQUALIFICATION SHALL BE 
UP TO MID-DAY OF ELECTION DAY; PROVIDED 
THAT, IN THE CASE OF SUBSTITUTION AFTER THE 
PRINTING OF BALLOTS, THE SUBSTITUTE SHALL 
HAVE THE SAME SURNAME AS THE CANDIDATE 
WHO DIED OR WAS DISQUALIFIED.
FOR PURPOSES OF SUBSTITUllON DUE TO 
WITHDRAWAL, THE SUBSTITUTE CANDIDATE 
MUST ALREADY BE A MEMBER OF THE POLITICAL 
PARTY AT THE TIME OF THE FILING OF THE 
CERTIFICATE OF CANDIDACY OF THE CANDIDATE 
TO BE SUBSTITUTED DURING THE ORIGINAL 
PERIOD FOR FILING SET BY THE COMELEC. SUCH 
MEMBERSHIP SHALL BE PROVEN BY A 
NOTARIZED OATH OF MEMBERSHIP TO THE 
POLITICAL PARTY TAKEN BY THE SUBSTITUTE 
CANDIDATE, DULY ATTESTED TO BY THE 
AUTHORIZED REPRESENTATIVE OF THE 
POLITICAL PARTY, AND BY SUCH OTHER PROOF 
AS MAY BE ADDITIONALLY REQUIRED BY THE 
COMELEC.
ANY MISREPRESENTATION AS TO THE 
ABOVE REQUIRED MEMBERSHIP SHALL BE 
CONSIDERED A MATERIAL MISREPRESENTATION


0;
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IN A PETITION FOR THE CANCELLATION OF A
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CERTIFICATE OF CANDIDACY.
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THE SUBSTITUTION DUE TO WITHDRAWAL
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SHALL BE WITHOUT PREJUDICE TO ANY
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PROCEEDING TO DECLARE THE ORIGINAL
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CANDIDATE AS A NUISANCE CANDIDATE. IF THE
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ORIGINAL CANDIDATE IS DECLARED AS A 
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NUISANCE CANDIDATE, THE SUBSTITUTION 
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SHALL BE DEEMED VOID. 
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Sec. 2. Separability Clause. - If any provision of this Act is declared
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unconstitutional or invalid, other parts or provisions hereof not affected shall continue
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to be in full force and effect.
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Sec. 3. Repealing Clause. - All laws, executive orders, presidential decrees,
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presidential proclamations, letters of instruction, rules and regulations or parts
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thereof which are inconsistent with the provisions of this Act are hereby repealed or
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modified accordingly.
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Sec. 4. Effectivity Clause. - This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days following
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its publication in the Official Gazette or in a newspaper of general circulation in the
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Philippines.
Approved,