Omnibus Election Code of the Philippines/Article XIX

Board of canvassers.—There shall be a board of canvassers for each province, city, municipality, and district of Metropolitan Manila as follows:


 * (a) Provincial board of canvassers.—the provincial board of canvassers shall be composed of the provincial election supervisor or a senior lawyer in the regional office of the Commission, as chairman, the provincial fiscal, as vice-chairman, and the provincial superintendent of schools, and one representative from each of the ruling party and the dominant opposition political party in the constituency concerned entitled to be represented, as members.


 * (b) City board of canvassers.—the city board of canvassers shall be composed of the city election registrar or a lawyer of the Commission, as chairman, the city fiscal and the city superintendent of schools, and one representative from each of the ruling party and the dominant opposition political party entitled to be represented, as members.


 * (c) District board of canvassers of Metropolitan Manila—the district board of canvassers shall be composed of a lawyer of the Commission, as chairman, and a ranking fiscal in the district and the most senior district school supervisor in the district to be appointed upon consultation with the Ministry of Justice and the Ministry of Education, Culture and Sports, respectively, and one representative from each of the ruling party and the dominant opposition political party in the constituency concerned, as members.


 * (d) Municipal board of canvassers.—the municipal board of canvassers shall be composed of the election registrar or a representative of the Commission, as chairman, the municipal treasurer, and the district supervisor or in his absence any public school principal in the municipality and one representative from each of the ruling party and the dominant opposition political party entitled to be represented, as members.


 * (e) Board of canvassers for newly created political subdivisions—the Commission shall constitute a board of canvassers and appoint the members thereof for the first election in a newly created province, city or municipality in case the officials who shall act as members thereof have not yet assumed their duties and functions. (Sec. 44, BP 697)

Relationship with candidates and other members.—The chairman and the members of the board of canvassers shall not be related within the fourth civil degree of consanguinity or affinity to any of the candidates whose votes will be canvassed by said board, or to any member of the same board. (Sec. 164, 2nd par. 1978 EC)

Prohibition against leaving official station.—During the period beginning election day until the proclamation of the winning candidates, no member or substitute member of the different boards of canvassers shall be transferred, assigned or detailed outside of his official station, nor shall he leave said station without prior authority of the Commission. (Sec. 165, 1978 EC)

Feigned illness.—Any member of the board of canvassers feigning illness in order to be substituted on election day until the proclamation of the winning candidates shall be guilty of an election offense.

Vote required.—A majority vote of all the members of the board of canvassers shall be necessary to render a decision. (Sec. 166, 1978 EC)

Incapacity and substitution of members of boards of canvassers.—In case of non-availability, absence, disqualification due to relationship, or incapacity for any cause of the chairman, the Commission shall designate the provincial or city fiscal to act as chairman. Likewise, in case of non-availability, absence, disqualification due to relationship, or incapacity for any cause, of such designee, the next ranking provincial or city fiscal shall be designated by the Commission and such designation shall pass to the next in rank until the designee qualifies. With respect to the other members of the board of canvassers, the Commission shall appoint as substitute the provincial, city or municipal officers of other government agencies in the province, city or municipality, as the case may be, and with respect to the representatives of the accredited political parties, the Commission shall appoint as substitutes those nominated by the said political parties. (Sec. 167, 1978 EC)

Supervision and control over board of canvassers.—The Commission shall have direct control and supervision over the board of canvassers.

Any member of the board of canvassers may, at any time, be relieved for cause and substituted motu proprio by the Commission. (Sec. 168, 1978 EC)

Notice of meeting of the board.—At least five days before the meeting of the board, the chairman of the board shall give notice to all members thereof and to each candidate and political party of the date, time and place of the meeting. (New)

Manner of delivery and transmittal of election returns.—(a) For the city and municipal board of canvassers, the copy of the election returns of a polling place intended for the city or municipal board of canvassers, duly placed inside a sealed envelope signed and affixed with the imprint of the thumb of the right hand of all the members of the board of election inspectors, shall be personally delivered by the members of the board of election inspectors to the city or municipal board of canvassers under proper receipt to be signed by all the members thereof.

(b) For the provincial and district boards of canvassers in Metropolitan Manila, the copy of the election returns of a polling place intended for the provincial or district board of canvassers in the case of Metropolitan Manila, shall be personally delivered by the members of the board of election inspectors to the election registrar for transmittal to the proper board of canvassers under proper receipt to be signed by all the members thereof.

The election registrar concerned shall place all the returns intended for the board of canvassers inside a ballot box provided with three padlocks whose keys shall be kept as follows: one by the election registrar, another by the representative of the ruling party and the third by the representative of the dominant political opposition party.

For this purpose, the two political parties shall designate their representatives whose names shall be submitted to the election registrar concerned on or before the tenth day preceding the election. The three in possession of the keys shall personally transmit the ballot box, properly locked, containing the election returns to the board of canvassers. Watchers of political parties, coalition of political parties, and of organizations collectively authorized by the Commission to designate watchers shall have the right to accompany transmittal of the ballot boxes containing the election returns.

It shall be unlawful for any person to delay, obstruct, impede or prevent through force, violence, coercion, intimidation or by any means which vitiates consent, the transmittal of the election returns or to take away, abscond with, destroy, deface or mutilate or substitute the election returns or the envelope or the ballot box containing the election returns or to violate the right of the watchers.

The watchers of the political parties, coalition of political parties and the candidates shall have the right to accompany the members of the board of election inspectors or the election registrar in making the delivery to the boards of canvassers. (Sec. 42, BP 697)

Safekeeping of transmitted election returns.—The board of canvassers shall keep the ballot boxes containing the election returns in a safe and secure room before and after the canvass. The door to the room must be padlocked by three locks with the keys thereof kept as follows: one with the chairman, the other with the representative of the ruling party, and the other with the representative of the dominant opposition political party. The watchers of candidates, political parties, coalition of political parties and organization collectively authorized by the Commission to appoint watchers shall have the right to guard the room. Violation of this right shall constitute an election offense.

Canvass by the board.—The board of canvassers shall meet not later than six o’clock in the afternoon of election day at the place designated by the Commission to receive the election returns and to immediately canvass those that may have already been received. It shall meet continuously from day to day until the canvass is completed, and may adjourn but only for the purpose of awaiting the other election returns from other polling places within its jurisdiction. Each time the board adjourns, it shall make a total of all the votes canvassed so far for each candidate for each office, furnishing the Commission in Manila by the fastest means of communication a certified copy thereof, and making available the data contained therein to the mass media and other interested parties. As soon as the other election returns are delivered, the board shall immediately resume canvassing until all the returns have been canvassed.

The respective board of canvassers shall prepare a certificate of canvass duly signed and affixed with the imprint of the thumb of the right hand of each member, supported by a statement of the votes received by each candidate in each polling place and, on the basis thereof, shall proclaim as elected the candidates who obtained the highest number of votes cast in the province, city, municipality or barangay. Failure to comply with this requirement shall constitute an election offense.

Subject to reasonable exceptions, the board of canvassers must complete their canvass within thirty-six hours in municipalities, forty-eight hours in cities and seventy-two hours in provinces. Violation hereof shall be an election offense punishable under Section 264 hereof.

With respect to the election for President and Vice-President, the provincial and city boards of canvassers shall prepare in quintuplicate a certificate of canvass supported by a statement of votes received by each candidate in each polling place and transmit the first copy thereof to the Speaker of the Batasang Pambansa. The second copy shall be transmitted to the Commission, the third copy shall be kept by the provincial election supervisor or city election registrar; the fourth and the fifth copies to each of the two accredited political parties. (Sec. 169, 1978 EC)

Persons not allowed inside the canvassing room.—It shall be unlawful for any officer or member of the Armed Forces of the Philippines, including the Philippine Constabulary, or the Integrated National Police or any peace officer or any armed or unarmed persons belonging to an extra-legal police agency, special forces, reaction forces, strike forces, home defense forces, barangay self-defense units, barangay tanod, or of any member of the security or police organizations of government ministries, commissions, councils, bureaus, offices, instrumentalities, or government-owned or controlled corporations or their subsidiaries or of any member of a privately owned or operated security, investigative, protective or intelligence agency performing identical or similar functions to enter the room where the canvassing of the election returns are held by the board of canvassers and within a radius of fifty meters from such room: Provided, however, That the board of canvassers by a majority vote, if it deems necessary, may make a call in writing for the detail of policemen or any peace officers for their protection or for the protection of the election documents and paraphernalia in the possession of the board, or for the maintenance of peace and order, in which case said policemen or peace officers, who shall be in proper uniform, shall stay outside the room within a radius of thirty meters near enough to be easily called by the board of canvassers at any time. (New)

When the election returns are delayed, lost or destroyed.—In case its copy of the election returns is missing, the board of canvassers shall, by messenger or otherwise, obtain such missing election returns from the board of election inspectors concerned, or if said returns have been lost or destroyed, the board of canvassers, upon prior authority of the Commission, may use any of the authentic copies of said election returns or a certified copy of said election returns issued by the Commission, and forthwith direct its representative to investigate the case and immediately report the matter to the Commission.

The board of canvassers, notwithstanding the fact that not all the election returns have been received by it, may terminate the canvass and proclaim the candidates elected on the basis of the available election returns if the missing election returns will not affect the results of the election. (Sec. 171, 1978 EC)

Material defects in the election returns.—If it should clearly appear that some requisites in form or data had been omitted in the election returns, the board of canvassers shall call for all the members of the board of election inspectors concerned by the most expeditious means, for the same board to effect the correction: Provided, That in case of the omission in the election returns of the name of any candidate and/or his corresponding votes, the board of canvassers shall require the board of election inspectors concerned to complete the necessary data in the election returns and affix therein their initials: Provided, further, That if the votes omitted in the returns cannot be ascertained by other means except by recounting the ballots, the Commission, after satisfying itself that the identity and integrity of the ballot box have not been violated, shall order the board of election inspectors to open the ballot box, and, also after satisfying itself that the integrity of the ballots therein has been duly preserved, order the board of election inspectors to count the votes for the candidate whose votes have been omitted with notice thereof to all candidates for the position involved and thereafter complete the returns.

The right of a candidate to avail of this provision shall not be lost or affected by the fact that an election protest is subsequently filed by any of the candidates. (Sec. 172, 1978 EC)

When election returns appear to be tampered with or falsified.—If the election returns submitted to the board of canvassers appear to be tampered with, altered or falsified after they have left the hands of the board of election inspectors, or otherwise not authentic, or were prepared by the board of election inspectors under duress, force, intimidation, or prepared by persons other than the member of the board of election inspectors, the board of canvassers shall use the other copies of said election returns and, if necessary, the copy inside the ballot box which upon previous authority given by the Commission may be retrieved in accordance with Section 220 hereof. If the other copies of the returns are likewise tampered with, altered, falsified, not authentic, prepared under duress, force, intimidation, or prepared by persons other than the members of the board of election inspectors, the board of canvassers or any candidate affected shall bring the matter to the attention of the Commission. The Commission shall then, after giving notice to all candidates concerned and after satisfying itself that nothing in the ballot box indicate that its identity and integrity have been violated, order the opening of the ballot box and, likewise after satisfying itself that the integrity of the ballots therein has been duly preserved shall order the board of election inspectors to recount the votes of the candidates affected and prepare a new return which shall then be used by the board of canvassers as basis of the canvass. (Sec. 173, 1978 EC)

Discrepancies in election returns.—In case it appears to the board of canvassers that there exists discrepancies in the other authentic copies of the election returns from a polling place or discrepancies in the votes of any candidate in words and figures in the same return, and in either case the difference affects the results of the election, the Commission, upon motion of the board of canvassers or any candidate affected and after due notice to all candidates concerned, shall proceed summarily to determine whether the integrity of the ballot box had been preserved, and once satisfied thereof shall order the opening of the ballot box to recount the votes cast in the polling place solely for the purpose of determining the true result of the count of votes of the candidates concerned. (Sec. 174, 1978 EC)

When integrity of ballots is violated.—If upon the opening of the ballot box as ordered by the Commission under Section 234, 235 and 236, hereof, it should appear that there are evidence or signs of replacement, tampering or violation of the integrity of the ballots, the Commission shall not recount the ballots but shall forthwith seal the ballot box and order its safekeeping. (New)

Canvass of remaining or unquestioned returns to continue.—In cases under Section 233, 234, 235 and 236 hereof, the board of canvassers shall continue the canvass of the remaining or unquestioned election returns. If, after the canvass of all the said returns, it should be determined that the returns which have been set aside will affect the result of the election, no proclamation shall be made except upon orders of the Commission after due notice and hearing. Any proclamation made in violation hereof shall be null and void. (New)

Watchers.—Each candidate, political party or coalition of political parties shall be entitled to appoint one watcher in the board of canvassers. The watcher shall have the right to be present at, and take note of, all the proceedings of the board of canvassers, to read the election returns without touching them, to file a protest against any irregularity in the election returns submitted, and to obtain from the board of canvassers a resolution thereon. (Sec. 176, 1978 EC; Sec. 45, BP 697)

Election resulting in tie.—Whenever it shall appear from the canvass that two or more candidates have received an equal and highest number of votes, or in cases where two or more candidates are to be elected for the same position and two or more candidates received the same number of votes for the last place in the number to be elected, the board of canvassers, after recording this fact in its minutes, shall by resolution, upon five days notice to all the tied candidates, hold a special public meeting at which the board of canvassers shall proceed to the drawing of lots of the candidates who have tied and shall proclaim as elected the candidates who may be favored by luck, and the candidates so proclaimed shall have the right to assume office in the same manner as if he had been elected by plurality of vote. The board of canvassers shall forthwith make a certificate stating the name of the candidate who had been favored by luck and his proclamation on the basis thereof.

Nothing in this section shall be construed as depriving a candidate of his right to contest the election. (Sec. 177, 1978 EC)