List of special elections in the Philippines

This is a list of special elections in the Philippines. The Philippines holds two types of special elections: those that were supposed to be held on election day but were delayed, and those held after an office has become vacant. This article describes the second type, which is also known outside the Philippines and the United States as "by-elections". This includes special elections to Congress and its predecessors—the Philippine Legislature, the National Assembly of the Philippines, the Commonwealth Congress, and the Batasang Pambansa—as well as to local legislatures and executive offices, if applicable.

Most special elections are for vacancies in Congress. The last special election of any sort was held in Cavite's 7th congressional district on February 25, 2023, to elect the successor of Jesus Crispin Remulla, who vacated his post to become Secretary of Justice.

Arising due to vacancies

Procedure

American era

The Philippine Commission, by then the highest civil authority outside the Governor-General, in the Insular Government of the Philippine Islands, passed Act No. 1582 or the "Election Law" on January 9, 1907. It specifies that for any vacancies in the Philippine Assembly, it shall be determined by a special election set by the Governor-General that shall be not be less than 40 days, but not more than 90 days, from the date of proclamation.

For provincial officials, the Governor-General shall call for a special election. For municipal officials, if the office of municipal president is vacated, it shall be filled by the vice-president, if there is one. For other municipal officials, it shall be appointed by the provincial board.

The same law specified that once convened, the Philippine Assembly shall be the lower house of the bicameral Philippine Legislature, with the Philippine Commission being the upper house.

Act No. 2045, enacted by the Philippine Legislature on February 3, 1911, struck out the provision on the prohibition of filling up vacancies on the Philippine Assembly a year before its term ends.

The Tydings–McDuffie Act transformed the Insular Government to the Commonwealth of the Philippines. A constitution was then approved, replacing the Philippine Legislature with the unicameral National Assembly. The National Assembly then passed Commonwealth Act No. 21 that governed special elections. It stated that vacancies that occur 10 months before the term expires shall have special elections.

In the 1935 constitution, it was silent on the procedure governing vacancies in the vice presidency once the vice president becomes president. During the 1935 constitution's usage, the vice presidency was left vacant in cases such as this.

Third Republic era

The United States granted independence to the Philippines on July 4, 1946.

In Republic Act No. 180, or the Revised Election Code of 1947, if a vacancy in either chamber of Congress occurs at least 10 months or before a regular election, the president shall call a special election as soon as the chamber where the vacancy occurred of the existence of such vacancy notified him. ^[1]

During the Third Republic era (1946–1972), special elections were held concurrently with the Senate midterm and local elections.

Fourth Republic era

The 1973 constitution originally abolished the vice presidency. It was revived under a 1984 amendment, but an election was not immediately scheduled.

In Batas Pambansa Blg. 881, or the Omnibus Election Code of the Philippines, approved on December 3, 1985, in case of a vacancy in the Batasang Pambansa (National Parliament) 18 months or more before a regular election, the Commission on Elections shall call a special election to be held within sixty days after the vacancy occurs; in case parliament is dissolved, the President shall call an election which shall not be held earlier than forty-five nor later than sixty days from the date of such dissolution. ^[2] Several weeks earlier, President Ferdinand Marcos ordered the Batasang Pambansa to call a special snap election a year prior to the regularly-schedule election. B.P. Blg. 883 called the special presidential election on the same day B.P. Blg. 881 was passed. Marcos was then ousted after the People Power Revolution when it was alleged he won that election via massive election fraud. The new government headed by President Corazon Aquino restored the presidential system with a bicameral Congress.

Fifth Republic era

The constitution ratified in 1987 provided Congress to convene on the third day of the vacancy of both the presidency and vice presidency to enact a law calling for a special election for both offices, with the exception that no election will be called if the next scheduled election is 18 months away. If only one of the offices is vacant, the vice president becomes president, or the president appoints a member of Congress as vice president, with both chambers voting separately to confirm the appointment, as the case may be. ^[3]

Later, as stipulated in R.A. No. 6645 approved on December 28, 1987, once a vacancy occurs in the Senate at least 18 months, or in the House of Representatives at least one year, before the next scheduled election, the Commission on Elections, upon receipt of a resolution from the chamber where the vacancy occurred, shall schedule a special election. The special election will then be held not earlier than 45 days nor later than 90 days from the date of the resolution. ^[4]

However, R.A. No. 7166 approved on November 26, 1991, amended parts of R.A. No. 6645. When a vacancy in the House of Representatives occurs at least one year before the expiration of the term, the special election shall be held not earlier than 60 days nor later than 90 days after occurrence of the vacancy. For the Senate, if the vacancy occurs also at least one year before the expiration of the term, the special election shall be held on the day of the next succeeding regular election. ^[5]

With the passage of Republic Act No. 8295 in 1997, if there is only one candidate running for the position, that candidate would be proclaimed as the winner, and an election would no longer be held. ^[6] This is unlike in regularly scheduled elections where voting would still be held and the candidate has to get one vote in order to be elected. Since the enactment of this law, no special election has seen only one candidate.

Not all vacancies that occurred a year before the next regular election resulted in a special election. To save money, the Speaker appoints a caretaker representative from a nearby district. In same cases a caretaker representative was appointed while an election date was considered.

As with general elections, special elections are usually scheduled on a Monday. Special elections held since the 15th Congress are mostly done on Saturdays. In some cases, election days are declared as holidays.

Lack of special elections

In accordance with current laws, the decision to call a special election to fill permanent vacancies is not mandatory, and is solely at the discretion of Congress, which has received criticism for not quickly acting to fill such vacancies. ^[7] Despite many vacancies occurring well before a year from the end of a congressional term, Congress has left many such seats unfilled. In more extreme examples some even remained vacant for two years or more: ^[8]

Since the country's independence in 1946, no special elections were called during the presidencies of Carlos P. Garcia, Corazon Aquino and Joseph Estrada; the 4th Congress, during the Garcia presidency, notably did not have deaths in the lower house. During the first half of the presidency of Diosdado Macapagal, and the latter half of the presidencies of Fidel V. Ramos and Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, and from the beginning of the second presidential term of Ferdinand Marcos in 1969 until his removal from office in 1986, no special elections were called. During the presidency of Rodrigo Duterte, no special elections were ever held. In the first half of the presidency of Bongbong Marcos, at least one special election was called.

President and vice president

The current constitution mandates Congress shall call for a special election if both the offices of president and vice president are vacant at the same time, and that the next regularly-scheduled election is not more than 18 months away.

This provision of the constitution has never been applied.

Senate

Philippine Legislature

From 1917 to 1934, senators are elected via senatorial districts; a vacancy mid-term had been filled up by a special election.

District	Leg.	Date	Predecessor	Political party		Cause	Winner	Political party		Retained?
2nd	4th	May 5, 1917	Aquilino Calvo		Nacionalista	Appointed Mountain Province governor	Matias Gonzales		Nacionalista	Yes
3rd	5th	October 25, 1919	Francisco Liongson		Nacionalista	Died in office	Ceferino de Leon		Nacionalista	Yes
4th	6th	October 3, 1923	Pedro Guevara		Nacionalista	Elected resident commissioner	Ramon J. Fernandez		Nacionalista	Yes
3rd	7th	March 23, 1926	Santiago Lucero		Democrata	Died in office	Luis Morales		Democrata	Yes
9th		1926	Tomas Gomez		Nacionalista	Died in office	Pastor Salazar		Nacionalista	Yes
7th		July 21, 1927	Jose Ma. Arroyo		Nacionalista	Died in office	Jose Ledesma		Nacionalista	Yes
6th	9th	1931	Juan B. Alegre		Democrata	Died in office	José O. Vera		Nacionalista	No

Commonwealth Congress

• No special elections were called for the Commonwealth Congress.

Starting from 1941, senators elected at-large nationwide, have 6-year terms, with senators elected via staggered elections: every two years, eight out of the 24 senators were elected from 1940 to 1972, and 12 out of 24 senators every three years since 1987. In cases where a senator left office before the expiration of his term, a special election on the day of the next regularly scheduled Senate election was held to fill up the vacancy, as long as the seat per se won't be contested on that election day. There had been three cases where that happened.

Congress

District	Leg.	Date	Predecessor	Political party		Cause	Winner	Political party		Retained?
Nationwide at-large	2nd	November 13, 1951	Fernando Lopez		Liberal	Elected vice president	Felixberto Verano		Nacionalista	No
Nationwide at-large	3rd	November 8, 1955	Carlos P. Garcia		Nacionalista	Elected vice president	Roseller T. Lim		Nacionalista	Yes
Nationwide at-large	12th	May 14, 2001	Teofisto Guingona Jr.		Lakas	Appointed vice president	Gregorio Honasan		Independent	No

Statistics

Death and leaving office for another position are the most frequent reasons why there are senatorial special elections:

Reason for vacancy	Total	%
Death/Killing	5	50%
Left office to assume another position	4	40%
Resignation	1	10%
Total	10	100%

Per election

1951

In 1949, Senator Fernando Lopez (who was on his second year of service in the Senate) was elected Vice President of the Philippines. To fill the vacancy, a special election was held separately with senators whose terms ended in that year: ^[9]

Candidate		Party	Votes	%
	Felixberto Verano	Nacionalista Party	873,457	47.69
	Cornelio Villareal	Liberal Party	609,303	33.27
	Prospero Sanidad	Liberal Party (Independent)	223,810	12.22
	Carlos Tan	Liberal Party (Independent)	124,975	6.82
Total			1,831,545	100.00
Valid votes			1,831,545	41.71
Invalid/blank votes			2,559,564	58.29
Total votes			4,391,109	–
Registered voters/turnout			4,754,307	92.36

1955

In 1953, Senator Carlos P. Garcia (who was on his second year of service in the Senate) was elected Vice President of the Philippines. To fill the vacancy, a special election was held separately with senators whose terms ended in that year: ^[10]

Candidate		Party	Votes	%
	Roseller T. Lim	Nacionalista Party	1,102,979	61.40
	Simeon Toribio	Liberal Party	688,913	38.35
	Avelino P. Garcia	Independent	4,378	0.24
Total			1,796,270	100.00
Valid votes			1,796,270	35.59
Invalid/blank votes			3,250,218	64.41
Total votes			5,046,488	–
Registered voters/turnout			6,487,061	77.79

2001

In 2001, Vice President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo succeeded Joseph Estrada after the 2001 EDSA Revolution, leaving the office of the vice president vacant. Arroyo appointed Teofisto Guingona (who was serving the second year of his second term as senator) as vice president later that year but prior to the 2001 Senate election. The Commission on Elections ruled that instead of twelve, the electorate will vote for thirteen senators, with the thirteenth-placed candidate serving Guingona's unexpired term of three years. For purposes of term limits, that senator was deemed to have served a full six-year term.

Candidate		Party or alliance			Votes	%
	Noli de Castro	Independent [lower-alpha 1]			16,237,386	55.09
	Juan Flavier	People Power Coalition		Lakas–NUCD–UMDP	11,735,897	39.82
	Serge Osmeña	People Power Coalition		PDP–Laban	11,593,389	39.33
	Franklin Drilon	People Power Coalition		Independent	11,301,700	38.34
	Joker Arroyo	People Power Coalition		Lakas–NUCD–UMDP	11,262,402	38.21
	Ramon Magsaysay Jr.	People Power Coalition		Independent	11,250,677	38.17
	Manny Villar	People Power Coalition		Independent	11,187,375	37.96
	Francis Pangilinan	People Power Coalition		Liberal Party	10,971,896	37.23
	Edgardo Angara	Puwersa ng Masa		Laban ng Demokratikong Pilipino	10,805,177	36.66
	Panfilo Lacson	Puwersa ng Masa		Laban ng Demokratikong Pilipino	10,535,559	35.74
	Loi Ejercito	Puwersa ng Masa		Independent	10,524,130	35.71
	Ralph Recto [lower-alpha 2]	People Power Coalition		Lakas–NUCD–UMDP	10,480,940	35.56
	Gregorio Honasan [lower-alpha 3]	Puwersa ng Masa		Independent	10,454,527	35.47
	Juan Ponce Enrile	Puwersa ng Masa		Laban ng Demokratikong Pilipino	9,677,209	32.83
	Miriam Defensor Santiago	Puwersa ng Masa		People's Reform Party	9,622,742	32.65
	Dong Puno	Puwersa ng Masa		Laban ng Demokratikong Pilipino	8,701,205	29.52
	Wigberto Tañada	People Power Coalition		Liberal Party	8,159,836	27.68
	Orly Mercado	Puwersa ng Masa		Independent	7,395,092	25.09
	Roberto Pagdanganan	People Power Coalition		Lakas–NUCD–UMDP	7,185,415	24.38
	Ernesto Herrera	People Power Coalition		Lakas–NUCD–UMDP	6,801,861	23.08
	Winnie Monsod	People Power Coalition		Aksyon Demokratiko	6,728,728	22.83
	Nina Rasul	Puwersa ng Masa		Independent	5,222,490	17.72
	Jamby Madrigal	Puwersa ng Masa		Laban ng Demokratikong Pilipino	5,043,043	17.11
	Liwayway Vinzons-Chato	People Power Coalition		Independent	4,831,501	16.39
	Perfecto Yasay	Independent			4,557,364	15.46
	Ombra Tamano	Puwersa ng Masa		Laban ng Demokratikong Pilipino	3,548,480	12.04
	Reuben Canoy	Puwersa ng Masa		Laban ng Demokratikong Pilipino	3,542,460	12.02
	Homobono Adaza	Nacionalista Party			770,647	2.61
	Rod Navarro	Independent			652,012	2.21
	Manuel Morato	Independent			625,789	2.12
	Moner Bajunaid	Partido Demokratiko Sosyalista ng Pilipinas			503,437	1.71
	Oliver Lozano	Kilusang Bagong Lipunan			470,572	1.60
	Melchor Chavez	Kilusang Bagong Lipunan			244,553	0.83
	Camilo Sabio	Independent			230,759	0.78
	Norma Nueva	Kilusang Bagong Lipunan			83,700	0.28
	Juan Casil	Kilusang Bagong Lipunan			74,481	0.25
	Eddie Gil	Partido Isang Bansa, Isang Diwa			15,522	0.05
Total					243,029,953	100.00
Total votes					29,474,309	–
Registered voters/turnout					36,271,782	81.26
Source: COMELEC vote totals, NCSB (turnout)

1. Guest candidate of Puwersa ng Masa
2. 18,000 votes deducted in Zamboanga del Norte as per Resolution No. NBC 01-003
3. Elected to serve the unexpired term (until 2004) of Teofisto Guingona Jr., who was appointed Vice President in February 2001.

Former senator Arturo Tolentino and others sued the Commission on Elections (Comelec) to set aside the proclamation of the thirteen senators in 2001. In Tolentino vs. Comelec, the Supreme Court ruled that the commission did not comply with the requirements of R.A. 6645, nor did the commission "give formal notice that it would proclaim as winner the senatorial candidate receiving the 13th highest number of votes in the special election." However, the court ruled that while the commission failed to give notice of the time of the special election, it did not negate the calling of such election, "indispensable to the elections validity." Since R.A. 6645 as amended "charges the voters with knowledge of this statutory notice and Comelec's failure to give the additional notice did not negate the calling of such special election, much less invalidate it", the court dismissed the petition for lack of merit and allowed the result of the election to stand. ^[11]

The "thirteenth" senator

There had been four instances in the Fifth Republic where a seat was vacated exactly midway through the senators' term due to election to another office. In all cases, the thirteenth-placed senator in the immediately preceding election was not given the former's seat, since the vacancy occurred after the election.

• In 1998, Senator Gloria Macapagal Arroyo was elected vice president midway through her term. Arroyo's seat was up for the 2001 election and no special elections were held, nor was the thirteenth-placed candidate during the 1998 Senate election (Roberto Pagdanganan) proclaimed winner. Later that year, Marcelo Fernan died in office, leaving two vacant seats in the Senate. Fernan's seat was also up in 2001.
• In 2004, Senator Noli de Castro was elected vice president midway through his term. De Castro's seat was up for the 2007 election and no special election was held, nor was the thirteenth-placed candidate during the 2004 Senate election (Robert Barbers) proclaimed winner.
• In 2007, Senator Alfredo Lim was elected mayor of Manila midway through his term. Lim's seat was up for the 2010 election and no special election was held, nor was the thirteenth-placed candidate during the 2007 Senate election (Koko Pimentel) proclaimed winner. On August 15, 2011, Pimentel assumed the seat of Migz Zubiri after allegations of electoral fraud.
• In 2010, Senator Benigno Aquino III was elected president midway through his term. Aquino's seat was up for the 2013 election and no special election was held, nor was the thirteenth-placed candidate during the 2010 Senate election (Risa Hontiveros) proclaimed winner.

In all of those cases, the thirteenth-placed candidate was not given the vacant seat as the voters elected for only twelve senators. ^[12]

This was not a problem for senators elected from 1946 to 1971, as long as they were elected to a new position prior to the second Senate election of their terms; a senator is expected to see two Senate elections in a six-year term instead of just one post-1987:

• In 1949, two years in to his term, Senator Fernando Lopez was elected vice president. A special election was called in 1951 for a successor to serve out the final two years of the term. Felixberto Verano was elected in the special election. Verano was subsequently defeated in the next regular election in 1953.
• In 1953, two years in to his term, Senator Carlos P. Garcia was elected vice president. A special election was called in 1955 for a successor to serve out the final two years of the term. Roseller T. Lim was elected in the special election. Lim was able to defend his seat in the next regular election in 1957.

For senators elected since 1987, their seats will be vacant until the end of their terms since there will be no intervening Senate elections from the day they gave up their seat up to the expiration of their term, unless it becomes vacant prior to election day, as shown in the four examples above.

House of Representatives

Since the 1998 elections, there have been two types of elected representatives elected separately, those who represent single-member districts and those elected via the party-list system. When a vacancy occurs for a party-list representative, the next-ranked nominee from the party replaces his predecessor. For district representatives, a special election will be held to determine who shall succeed the predecessor. During the Third Philippine Republic, where representatives had four-year terms, the special election was held together with the mid-term election.

A special election will not be held if the vacancy occurred less than a year before the next regularly scheduled election.

In case of deaths of appointed sectoral representatives from 1987 to 1998, the president may appoint a replacement, with the advice and consent of the Commission on Appointments.

Malolos Congress

The Malolos Constitution did not provide provisions for holding special elections to fill vacancies in the Malolos Congress.

Philippine Legislature

District	Leg.	Date	Predecessor	Political party		Cause	Winner	Political party		Retained?
Manila–1st	1st	March 30 and August 11, 1908	Dominador Gómez		Nacionalista	Expelled	Dominador Gómez		Nacionalista	Yes
					Nacionalista	Resigned rights to sit	Justo Lukban		Liga Popular	No
Cavite		January 19, 1909	Rafael Palma		Nacionalista	Appointed to the Philippine Commission	Emiliano Tría Tirona		Independent	No
Surigao	2nd	October 14, 1910	Manuel Gavieres		Nacionalista	Died in office	Inocencio Cortes		Nacionalista	Yes
La Laguna–1st		December 13, 1910	Potenciano Malvar		Nacionalista	Appointed La Laguna governor	Marcos Paulino		Progresista	No
Batanes		September 5, 1911	Teofilo Castillejos		Nacionalista	Died in office	Vicente Barsana		Progresista	No
Zambales		October 3, 1911	Alberto Barreto		Nacionalista	Appointed judge of the Rizal Court of First Instance	Gabriel Alba		Nacionalista	Yes
Ilocos Sur–1st	3rd	October 13, 1913	Vicente Singson Encarnacion		Progresista	Appointed to the Philippine Commission	Alberto Reyes		Progresista	Yes
Mindoro		March 26, 1914	Macario Adriatico		Nacionalista	Appointed member of the Code Committee	Mariano Leuterio		Liga Popular	No
Bulacan–1st		May 16, 1914	Aguedo Velarde		Nacionalista	Died in office	Ambrosio Santos		Nacionalista	Yes
Cagayan–1st			Cresencio Marasigan		Nacionalista	Election annulled	Venancio Concepción		Nacionalista	Yes
Zambales		July 22, 1914	Rafael Corpus		Nacionalista	Appointed Solicitor General	Gabriel Alba		Nacionalista	Yes
Iloilo–4th		August 28, 1914	Amando Avanceña		Nacionalista	Elected Iloilo governor	Tiburcio Lutero		Progresista	No
Negros Oriental–2nd		October 1, 1914	Teofisto Guingona Sr.		Progresista	Appointed Agusan governor	Leopoldo Rovira		Progresista	Yes
Capiz–2nd		October 10, 1914	Emilio Acevedo		Nacionalista	Died in office	Simeon Dadivas		Progresista	No
Cebu–7th		November 21, 1914	Eulalio Causing		Nacionalista	Resigned	Tomás N. Alonso		Nacionalista	Yes
Leyte–4th		September 18, 1915	Francisco Enage		Nacionalista	Appointed Iloilo provincial prosecutor	Ruperto Kapunan		Progresista	No
Rizal–2nd			Sixto de los Angeles		Nacionalista	Appointed Public Welfare Board member [13]	Leandro Jabson [14]		Nacionalista	Yes
Cebu–3rd	4th	1916	Filemon Sotto		Nacionalista	Elected senator from the 10th district	Vicente Urgello		Nacionalista	Yes
Cavite	7th	August 15, 1925	Augusto Reyes		Nacionalista	Died in office	Antero Soriano		Nacionalista	Yes
Nueva Ecija		March 22, 1926	Isauro Gabaldon		Nacionalista	Disqualified	Feliciano Ramoso		Nacionalista	Yes
Tayabas–2nd	8th	October 6, 1928	León Guinto		Nacionalista	Appointed Tayabas governor	Marcelo Boncan		Nacionalista	Yes
Cavite		1929	Antero Soriano		Nacionalista	Died in office	Fidel Ibañez		Nacionalista	Yes
Albay–1st	9th	September 29, 1931	Froilán Pavericio		Democrata	Died in office	Exequiel Kare [note 1]		Nacionalista	No
Mindoro		June 4, 1932	Mariano Leuterio		Nacionalista	Died in office	Juan L. Luna		Nacionalista	Yes
Batangas–1st		February 18, 1933	Antonio de las Alas		Nacionalista	Appointed Secretary of Public Works and Communications	Ramón Diokno		Nacionalista	Yes
Zambales		April 1, 1933	Gregorio Anonas		Nacionalista	Appointed Undersecretary of Public Works and Communications	Mariano Alisangco		Independent	No

National Assembly (Commonwealth)

District	Leg.	Date	Predecessor	Political party		Cause	Winner	Political party		Retained?
Ilocos Norte–2nd	1st	September 1, 1936	Julio Nalundasan		Nacionalista	Died prior to taking office	Ulpiano Arzadon		Nacionalista	Yes
Samar–2nd			Serafin Marabut		Nacionalista	Appointed Secretary of Budget	Pascual Azanza		Nacionalista	Yes
Leyte–4th			Francisco Enage		Nacionalista	Appointed technical adviser to President Manuel L. Quezon	Norberto Romualdez		Nacionalista	Yes
Abra			Quintín Paredes		Nacionalista	Appointed Resident Commissioner to the United States	Agapito Garduque		Nacionalista	Yes
Albay–3rd	2nd	December 10, 1940	Pedro Sabido		Nacionalista	Appointed manager of the National Abaca and other Fibers Corporation	Marcial O. Rañola		Nacionalista	Yes
Iloilo–2nd			Ruperto Montinola		Nacionalista	Died in office	Oscar Ledesma		Nacionalista	Yes
Leyte–5th			Ruperto Kapunan		Nacionalista	Died in office	Atilano R. Cinco		Nacionalista	Yes
Nueva Ecija–2nd			Felipe Buencamino Jr.		Nacionalista	Resigned	Gabriel Belmonte		Nacionalista	Yes

National Assembly (Second Republic)

The 1943 constitution did not provide provisions for holding special elections to fill vacancies in the National Assembly.

Commonwealth Congress

No special elections were called for the Commonwealth Congress, elected in 1941 and first met in 1945; the much-delayed elections of 1945 were held in 1946.

Congress of the Philippines

District	Leg.	Date	Predecessor	Political party		Cause	Winner	Political party		Retained?
Pangasinan–5th	1st	March 11, 1947	Narciso Ramos		Liberal	Appointed Minister-counsellor to the United Nations	Cipriano Alas		Liberal	Yes
Bukidnon			Carlos Fortich Sr.		Liberal	Died in office	Remedios Fortich		Liberal	Yes
Iloilo–1st			Jose Zulueta		Liberal	Appointed Secretary of the Interior	Mateo Nonato		Liberal	Yes
Cebu–6th		November 11, 1947	Nicolas Rafols		Nacionalista	Died in office	Manuel Zosa		Nacionalista	Yes
Iloilo–4th		March 23, 1948	Mariano Peñaflorida		Nacionalista	Elected Iloilo governor	Gaudencio Dimaisip		Nacionalista	Yes
Leyte–1st			Carlos Tan		Liberal	Elected senator	Jose Martinez		Liberal	Yes
Rizal–2nd	2nd	November 13, 1951	Emilio de la Paz		Nacionalista	Died in office	Isaias R. Salonga		Nacionalista	Yes
Occidental Mindoro			Raul Leuterio [note 2]		Liberal	Division of Mindoro province	Jesus V. Abeleda		Nacionalista	No
Zambales			Ramon Magsaysay		Liberal	Appointed as Secretary of National Defense	Cesar Miraflor		Liberal	Yes
Albay–1st	3rd	November 8, 1955	Lorenzo P. Ziga		Liberal	Died in office in a traffic accident	Tecla San Andres Ziga		Liberal	Yes
Samar–1st			Gregorio Tan		Nacionalista		Eladio Balite		Nacionalista	Yes
Negros Occidental–1st	5th	November 12, 1963	Vicente Gustillo Sr.		Nacionalista	Died in office	Armando Gustillo		Nacionalista	Yes
Batangas–1st			Apolinario Apacible		Nacionalista	Died in office	Luis Lopez		Liberal	No
Iloilo–3rd		November 9, 1965	Ramon Tabiana		Liberal	Died in office	Gloria Tabiana		Liberal	Yes
Davao del Sur	6th	November 14, 1967	Lorenzo Sarmiento [note 3]		Liberal	Division of Davao province	Artemio Loyola		Nacionalista	No
Davao Oriental					Liberal		Constancio P. Maglana		Nacionalista	No
South Cotabato			Salipada Pendatun [note 4]		Liberal	Division of Cotabato province	James L. Chiongbian		Nacionalista	No
Ilocos Norte–1st			Antonio Raquiza		Liberal	Appointed Secretary of Public Works	Roque Ablan Jr.		Nacionalista	No
Northern Samar			Eladio Balite		Nacionalista	Died in office	Eusebio Moore		Nacionalista	Yes
Agusan del Norte–2nd	9th	August 30, 1993	Edelmiro Amante		Nacionalista	Appointed Executive Secretary	Edelmiro Amante		Nacionalista	Yes
Capiz–1st			Gerardo Roxas Jr.		Liberal	Died in office	Mar Roxas		Liberal	Yes
Rizal–1st		March 7, 1994	Manuel Sanchez		Lakas	Disqualified	Gilberto Duavit Sr.		NPC	No
Zamboanga del Norte–1st	12th	August 26, 2002	Romeo Jalosjos Sr.		PDSP	Dropped from the rolls after criminal conviction	Cecilia Jalosjos Carreon		Reporma	No
Isabela–4th		May 12, 2003	Antonio Abaya		Lakas	Died in office	Giorgidi Aggabao		NPC	No
Cebu–5th	13th	May 30, 2005	Ace Durano		Lakas	Appointed Secretary of Tourism	Ramon Durano VI		NPC	No
Cagayan–2nd	15th	March 12, 2011	Florencio Vargas		Lakas–Kampi	Died prior to taking office	Baby Aline Vargas-Alfonso		Lakas–Kampi	Yes
Ilocos Sur–1st		May 28, 2011	Ronald Singson		Nacionalista	Resigned after criminal conviction	Ryan Luis Singson		Biled	No
Zambales–2nd		February 4, 2012	Antonio Diaz		LM	Died in office	Jun Omar Ebdane		LM	Yes
Negros Occidental–5th		June 2, 2012	Iggy Arroyo		Lakas–Kampi	Died in office	Alejandro Mirasol		Liberal	No
Cavite–7th	19th	February 25, 2023	Jesus Crispin Remulla		NUP	Appointed Secretary of Justice	Crispin Diego Remulla		NUP	Yes
Negros Oriental–3rd		December 9, 2023	Arnolfo Teves Jr.		NPC	Expelled	Cancelled			N/A

Batasang Pambansa

While the 1973 constitution had the mechanism for calling special elections in case of vacancies in the Batasang Pambansa, and several vacancies indeed happened, no special elections were called.

Statistics

By reason

The most common reason for the vacancies which were filled by special elections since 1907 is resignation (a total of 28 instances)—both from leaving office to assume another position (22), and for other reasons (7). Death of the incumbent representative is the second most common, accounting for more than two-fifths of instances. Other reasons for holding special elections were to fill new seats created upon the establishment of new provinces (4 instances), and to fill the seats vacated after: a winning candidate was disqualified post-election (2), a representative was expelled from the legislature (1), or a representative was "dropped from the rolls" over a criminal conviction (1).

Reason for vacancy	Total	%
Death/Killing	27	42%
Left office to assume another position	22	34%
Resignation for a reason other than leaving office to assume another position	7	11%
Creation of a new province	4	6%
Disqualification	2	3%
Expulsion	2	2%
Dropped from the rolls	1	2%
Total	65	100%

By legislative era

Most of the special elections—33, or more than half of the 61 conducted as of 2017—were held before the Second World War (1907–1941). In the space of 27 years after the war and before Ferdinand Marcos disbanded Congress and assumed dictatorial powers in 1972, a total of 18 special elections were held. In contrast, since the restoration of Congress in 1987 only 12 special elections have been held in the space of 30 years.

Legislative era	Total	%
Philippine Assembly (lower house of Philippine Legislature, 1907–1916)	18	28%
House of Representatives (lower house of Philippine Legislature, 1916–1935)	8	13%
National Assembly of the Commonwealth (unicameral body, 1935–1941)	7	11%
National Assembly of the Second Republic (unicameral body, 1943–1944)	0	0%
House of Representatives (lower house of Congress post-war period, 1945–1972)	18	28%
Batasang Pambansa (unicameral body, 1978–1986)	0	0%
House of Representatives (lower house of Congress post-restoration, 1987–present)	13	20%
Total	64	100%

Special elections on other positions

Local legislatures

Legislatures under the Local Government Code

For permanent vacancies in the Sangguniang Panlalawigan (provincial boards), Sangguniang Panlungsod (city councils) of highly urbanized and independent component cities and Sangguniang Bayan (municipal councils) of component municipalities in Metro Manila (currently just Pateros), the president through the Executive Secretary appoints someone from the same political party where the person who caused the vacancy belonged. If the person who vacated the post did not belong to a political party, the local chief executive (the governor or mayor, as the case may be) appoints upon the recommendation of the sanggunian concerned. For vacancies in the city and municipal councils for component cities and municipalities outside Metro Manila, the same process applies, with the local chief executive appointing the replacement. For the Sangguniang Barangay (barangay councils) and Sangguniang Kabataan (youth councils), it shall be filled by the official next in rank. ^[15] This means no special elections are held for local legislatures under the Local Government Code.

Bangsamoro Parliament

In the Bangsamoro Parliament created via the Bangsamoro Organic Law, a special election may be called if the vacating seat is from an unaffiliated member of parliament, and the vacancy happened at least one year before the next general election. If the vacancy is from an affiliated member of parliament, the party shall nominate a new member, and if it is a proportional seat, the party names the replacement. ^[16]

Chief executives

The vice president, vice governor and vice mayor shall replace the president, governor and mayor, as the case may be, upon permanent vacancy, and shall serve until the next general election. For permanent vacancy for the barangay chairman, the highest-ranking member of the Sangguniang Barangay (the barangay councilor that received the most votes in the preceding election) shall replace the predecessor. No special election shall be called. ^[15]

If a permanent vacancy for the president and vice president at the same time occurs, a special election will be called. An extraordinary special election was called in 1986.

Deputy of chief executives

Once a vacancy for the vice governor or vice mayor occurs, the highest-ranking member of the local legislature (the member that received the most votes in the preceding election) shall replace the predecessor. If that member belongs to a political party, that party will nominate a new member to the legislature. If that member is an independent, the governor or mayor will nominate a new member. No special election shall be called.

Delayed and rescheduled elections

President and vice president

Two presidential elections have been held outside of schedule. The first, which was supposed to be held in 1945, was delayed due to World War II, and was ultimately held in 1946. The second, which was supposed to be held in 1987, was held earlier than scheduled in February 1986. In both instances, the office of the presidency was not vacant.

Position	Date	Predecessor	Political party		Cause	Winner	Political party		Retained?
President	April 23, 1946	Sergio Osmeña		Nacionalista	Delay of election due to World War II	Manuel Roxas		Liberal	No
Vice president		Vacant				Elpidio Quirino		Liberal	No
President	February 7, 1986	Ferdinand Marcos		KBL	Called by the Batasang Pambansa upon orders by the president	Disputed ( see below )
Vice president		Vacant

1946 elections

Main articles: 1946 Philippine general election and 1946 Philippine presidential election

Due to the Commonwealth of the Philippines government being driven into exile by World War II, the supposed midterm election in November 1943 and the general election in November 1945 were not held as scheduled. The Commonwealth government reconstituted itself in 1945 and some senators called for elections to be held right away. The United States Congress approved a joint resolution setting the date of the election on not later than April 30, 1946. The Commonwealth Congress then enacted a law, Commonwealth Act No. 725, setting the date of the election on April 23, 1946. Like most special elections though, the winners would serve only until 1949, or as if their terms started in 1945.

Manuel Roxas defeated the incumbent Sergio Osmeña, while the former's running mate Elpidio Quirino defeated Osmeña's running mate Eulogio Rodriguez. Senate and House of Representatives elections were also held on the same date.

President

Candidate		Party	Votes	%
	Manuel Roxas	Nacionalista Party (Liberal wing) [lower-alpha 1]	1,333,006	53.93
	Sergio Osmeña	Nacionalista Party [lower-alpha 1]	1,129,994	45.72
	Hilario Moncado	Modernist Party	8,538	0.35
Total			2,471,538	100.00
Valid votes			2,471,538	95.17
Invalid/blank votes			125,342	4.83
Total votes			2,596,880	100.00
Registered voters/turnout			2,898,604	89.59
Source: Nohlen, Grotz, Hartmann, Hasall and Santos [17]

1. The Nacionalista Party was split into two wings: those who supported Osmeña or the "conservative wing", and those who supported Roxas or the "liberal wing". The liberal wing eventually split off after the election and became the Liberal Party.

Vice president

Candidate		Party	Votes	%
	Elpidio Quirino	Nacionalista Party (Liberal wing) [lower-alpha 1]	1,161,725	52.36
	Eulogio Rodriguez	Nacionalista Party [lower-alpha 1]	1,051,243	47.38
	Lou Salvador	Modernist Party	5,879	0.26
Total			2,218,847	100.00
Valid votes			2,218,847	85.44
Invalid/blank votes			378,033	14.56
Total votes			2,596,880	100.00
Registered voters/turnout			2,898,604	89.59
Source: Nohlen, Grotz, Hartmann, Hasall and Santos [18]

1. The Nacionalista Party was split into two wings: those who supported Osmeña or the "conservative wing", and those who supported Roxas or the "liberal wing". The liberal wing eventually split off after the election and became the Liberal Party.

1986 snap elections

Main article: 1986 Philippine presidential election

In 1985, the Batasang Pambansa called a special election for the offices of president and vice president on February 7, 1986; unlike special elections elsewhere when it was called due to a vacancy, incumbent president Ferdinand Marcos did not relinquish his office, and that the winners will serve a full six-year term, instead of the remainder of the current term. The vice presidency, which was vacant after it was restored when a constitutional amendment was approved in a 1984 plebiscite, was also at stake. Marcos and his running mate, MP from Manila Arturo Tolentino, won their respective elections against Corazon Aquino and Salvador Laurel, but allegations of massive fraud led to the People Power Revolution a couple of weeks later that led to his ouster.

President (COMELEC)

Candidate		Party	Votes	%
	Ferdinand Marcos	Kilusang Bagong Lipunan	10,807,197	53.62
	Corazon Aquino	United Nationalist Democratic Organization	9,291,716	46.10
	Reuben Canoy	Social Democratic Party	34,041	0.17
	Narciso Padilla	Movement for Truth, Order and Righteousness	23,652	0.12
Total			20,156,606	100.00
Valid votes			20,156,606	97.30
Invalid/blank votes			559,469	2.70
Total votes			20,716,075	100.00
Registered voters/turnout			26,278,744	78.83
Source: Annex XXXVIII of the report by the International Observer Delegation

Vice president (COMELEC)

Candidate		Party	Votes	%
	Arturo Tolentino	Kilusang Bagong Lipunan	10,134,130	50.66
	Salvador Laurel	United Nationalist Democratic Organization	9,173,105	45.85
	Eva Estrada Kalaw	Liberal Party (Kalaw wing) [lower-alpha 1]	662,185	3.31
	Roger Arienda	Movement for Truth, Order and Righteousness	35,974	0.18
Total			20,005,394	100.00
Valid votes			20,005,394	96.57
Invalid/blank votes			710,681	3.43
Total votes			20,716,075	100.00
Registered voters/turnout			26,278,744	78.83
Source: Annex XXXVIII of the report by the International Observer Delegation

1. Kalaw ran under her own wing of the Liberal Party, while the rest of party supported Laurel's candidacy.

In the official results from COMELEC that were later used by the Batasang Pambansa to proclaim the winners, Marcos and Tolentino won over Aquino and Laurel respectively, while in the unofficial results from NAMFREL, Aquino and Laurel led over Marcos and Tolentino.

Other offices

On special elections due to delays, the Commission on Elections usually sets the vote a day later, or up to several weeks later. The latest date the commission set a delayed special election is a more than year later after the regular election, when it held the elections for provincial government officials of Sulu in October 1996 after being delayed since May 1995. ^[19]

In 2010, due to the Supreme Court ruling the creation of the congressional district of Malolos as unconstitutional, the election at Bulacan's 1st congressional district originally scheduled for May 2010 was delayed. The ballots were originally printed with Malolos having a different set of candidates from the rest of the 1st district. ^[20] The election proceeded in November 2010. ^[21]

In 2018, the barangay elections in Marawi originally scheduled in May 2018 was done in September due to the siege of Marawi. ^[22]

See also

• Recall elections in the Philippines
• Referendums in the Philippines

Notes

1. Julian Locsin originally declared the winner, but Kare won election protest.
2. Leuterio was the representative from the undivided Mindoro province.
3. Sarmiento was the representative from the undivided Davao province.
4. Pendatun was the representative from the undivided Cotabato province.

References

1. "Revised Election Code".
2. "Batas Pambansa Blg. 881, s. 1985 | GOVPH". Official Gazette of the Republic of the Philippines. Retrieved 2021-03-24.
3. "THE 1987 CONSTITUTION OF THE REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES – ARTICLE VII | GOVPH". Official Gazette of the Republic of the Philippines. Retrieved 2021-04-13.
4. "REPUBLIC ACT NO. 6645 – AN ACT PRESCRIBING THE MANNER OF FILING A VACANCY IN THE CONGRESS OF THE PHILIPPINES". Chan Robles Virtual Law Library. July 19, 1998. Retrieved November 23, 2010.
5. "AN ACT PROVIDING FOR SYNCHRONIZED NATIONAL AND LOCAL ELECTIONS AND FOR ELECTORAL REFORMS, AUTHORIZING APPROPRIATIONS THEREFOR, AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES". The Lawphil Project. November 26, 1991. Retrieved November 23, 2010.
6. "AN ACT PROVIDING FOR THE PROCLAMATION OF A LONE CANDIDATE FOR ANY ELECTIVE OFFICE IN A SPECIAL ELECTION, AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES". Commission on Elections . Retrieved February 16, 2015.
7. Villar, Manuel B. Jr. (July 22, 2005). "Senate Bill No. 672 – AN ACT PRESCRIBING THE PROCEDURE FOR THE EXPEDITIOUS HOLDING OF A SPECIAL ELECTION IN CASE OF VACANCY IN THE CONGRESS OF THE PHILIPPINES, AMENDING FOR THE PURPOSE REPUBLIC ACT NUMBER I SIXTY-SIX HUNDRED AND FORTY-FIVE, ENTITLED "AN ACT PRESCRIBING THE MANNER OF FILLING A VACANCY IN THE CONGRESS OF THE PHILIPPINES" (PDF). Senate of the Philippines. Retrieved December 1, 2017.
8. Congressional Library Bureau. "Roster of Philippine Legislators". Republic of the Philippines, House of Representatives. Retrieved 7 February 2017.
9. "Clam Victory Amid Violence". The Milwaukee Journal . Associated Press. November 17, 1951. Retrieved December 6, 2012.
10. "List of Previous Senators". Senate.gov.ph. Archived from the original on April 23, 2007. Retrieved December 6, 2012.
11. "ARTURO M. TOLENTINO and ARTURO C. MOJICA, petitioners, vs. COMMISSION ON ELECTIONS, SENATOR RALPH G. RECTO and SENATOR GREGORIO B. HONASAN, respondents". Supreme Court of the Philippines. January 21, 2004. Retrieved November 25, 2010.
12. Coronel Ferrer, Miriam (June 17, 2010). "Senate facts – Miriam Coronel Ferrer". ABS-CBNNews.com. Retrieved November 22, 2010.
13. Executive Orders and Proclamations Issued by the Governor-general. Bureau of Printing. 1916. pp. 278–279.
14. Tiangco, Cesar S. (1967). Rizal Province: A Political History. Rizal Cultural Committee. p. 189.
15. "Book I - Title Two - Chapter 2". COMELEC.gov.ph. 2012-05-02. Retrieved 2020-04-09.
16. "Republic Act No. 11054" (PDF). Official Gazette. Retrieved 2020-04-09.
17. Dieter Nohlen; Florian Grotz; Christof Hartmann; Graham Hassall; Soliman M. Santos.
    Elections in Asia and the Pacific: A Data Handbook: Volume II: South East Asia, East Asia, and the South Pacific.
18. Dieter Nohlen; Florian Grotz; Christof Hartmann; Graham Hassall; Soliman M. Santos.
    Elections in Asia and the Pacific: A Data Handbook: Volume II: South East Asia, East Asia, and the South Pacific.
19. "Manila Standard - Google News Archive Search". news.google.com. Retrieved 2021-04-13.
20. Punay, Edu (2010-03-10). "It's final: No Malolos district". The Philippine Star . Archived from the original on 2013-01-31. Retrieved 2010-05-31.
21. Balobo, Dino (2010-11-15). "Alvarado defeats Pagdanganan in Bulacan special polls". The Philippine Star . Archived from the original on 2013-01-31. Retrieved 2010-11-15.
22. "Barangay, SK elections in Marawi set on September 22". Rappler. Retrieved 12 August 2018.

External links

• Online roster of Philippine legislators (House of Representatives)
• Commission on Elections' special elections webpage
• Act No. 1582, or the Election Law
• Act No. 2045, limiting terms of local officials
• Commonwealth Act No. 21, an act providing for special elections to fill vacancies in the National Assembly
• Commonwealth Act No. 725, calling special presidential and vice presidential elections in 1946
• Republic Act No. 180, or the Revised Election Code
• Batas Pambansa Blg. 881, or the Omnibus Election Code
• Batas Pambansa Blg. 883, calling special presidential and vice presidential elections in 1986
• Republic Act No. 6645, governing special elections in Congress
• Republic Act No. 7166. synchronizing elections
• Republic Act No. 8295, forgoing special elections if there is only one candidate