COMELEC: 14 senatorial aspirants seek reconsideration

THE Commission on Elections said that some 14 out of 117 senatorial aspirants that were earlier declared as nuisance bets, had filed separate motions for reconsideration (MRs), among them include a social media personality bearing the surname of President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr.

According to Comelec chairperson George Erwin Garcia, as of Thursday, November 21, 2024the personalities that filed MRs include: Francis Leo Antonio Marcos; Felipe Fernandez Montealto Jr.; Orlando Caranto De Guzman; Jaime Gaspacho Balmas; Pedro Gonzales Ordiales; John Rafael Campang Escobar; Roberto Sontosidad Sembrano; Romulo Tindoc San Ramon; Fernando Fabian Diaz; Luther Gascon Meniano; Romeo Castro Macaraeg; Subair Guinthum Mustapha; Berteni Cataluña Causing; and Alexander Cura Encarnacion.

It will be recalled that Garcia said on Tuesday that 117 senatorial hopefuls were disqualified for the #BotoNgKabataan2025 midterm elections.

According to the Comelec, the list was “without prejudice to the decision of the Division or En Banc in the petitions to declare as nuisance candidates filed by the Law Department.”

The Supreme Court had earlier ruled that unpopularity and non-membership in a political party are not basis for an individual to be declared as a nuisance candidate.

Under the Comelec Rules of Procedure Part V, Rule 24, any candidate is identified to have no bona fide intention to run for public office if they put the election process in “mockery or disrepute or to cause confusion among the voters by the similarity of the names of the registered candidates or who by other acts or circumstances.”