MANILA, Philippines — Several civil society and election groups have questioned the law postponing the barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan (SK) elections to November 2028, arguing that the three-year delay extends the terms of incumbent local officials and could strengthen political networks ahead of the national elections that year.
Election lawyer Romulo Macalintal plans to ask the Supreme Court to strike down Republic Act No. 12326, which President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. signed on Sept. 24 and moves the next barangay and SK elections (BSKE) from Nov. 2, 2026, to Nov. 13, 2028.
Macalintal said the law unreasonably extends the terms of incumbent barangay and SK officials without a new mandate from voters.
Roland Simbulan, chair of the Center for People Empowerment in Governance, said the Marcos administration could gain politically from keeping the current barangay political structure in place as the country approaches the 2028 presidential and national elections.
Simbulan said the arrangement could give the administration more time to strengthen relationships and political machinery at the grassroots level.
Marcos announced the law on Sept. 25, three days before the scheduled start of the filing period for certificates of candidacy for the 2026 BSKE.
Five-year terms
RA 12326 sets the next BSKE on Nov. 13, 2028, about six months after the May 8, 2028 presidential and general elections.
The law also sets the term of barangay and SK officials at five years. That provision allows current officials to remain in office for three years beyond the previously scheduled 2026 elections.
The measure limits barangay officials to two terms and SK officials to one term.
Marcos previously said the longer terms would give local officials more time to serve their communities.
Civil society group August Twenty-One Movement, or Atom, criticized the postponement and described it as undemocratic.
Atom said governments should not postpone elections to accommodate political plans. It also argued that the Duterte and Marcos administrations have repeatedly postponed the BSKE ahead of major elections.
Atom said both administrations have each signed three measures postponing barangay and SK elections since 2022.
Election watchdog raises concerns
The National Citizens’ Movement for Free Elections (Namfrel) also questioned the repeated postponements and called for an end to the practice.
Namfrel said the timing of the next BSKE in the same year as the 2028 national elections raises concerns because barangay officials can play important roles in local and national political campaigns.
Namfrel Secretary General Eric Alvia also questioned the basis for setting the terms at five years.
Alvia said authorities did not cite studies showing that longer terms would produce more efficient or responsive barangay governance.
He said voters should provide a fresh mandate to officials who receive extended terms rather than allowing an executive-legislative action to determine their tenure.
The Commission on Elections had already prepared for the 2026 BSKE and spent at least P8 billion on preparations.
Namfrel said it would support efforts to challenge RA 12326 before the Supreme Court, arguing that the law raises constitutional concerns.
Supreme Court challenge
Macalintal said the three-year postponement effectively extends the terms of incumbent officials without a vote from the electorate.
He argued that the measure deprives millions of Filipino voters of the opportunity to choose their barangay and SK officials in 2026.
Macalintal previously challenged RA 11935, which Marcos signed in October 2022 and used to move the BSKE from Dec. 5, 2022, to Oct. 30, 2023. The Supreme Court declared that law unconstitutional in June 2023.
Marcos later signed RA 12232 on Aug. 13, 2025, moving the BSKE from Dec. 1, 2025, to Nov. 2, 2026. The law also increased the terms of barangay and SK officials from three years to four years.
Macalintal challenged RA 12232 before the Supreme Court, while high school teacher John Barry Tayam, a group of young voters led by Mystro Yushi Fujii, and lawyer Alberto Hidalgo filed separate petitions.
The petitioners argued that RA 12232 failed to comply with guidelines on election postponements established in the 2023 Supreme Court case Macalintal v. Commission on Elections.
On Nov. 11, 2025, the Supreme Court upheld RA 12232 in an 8-5-2 decision.
Associate Justice Jhosep Lopez wrote the decision, which denied four consolidated petitions and held that Congress has the authority to determine the terms of barangay officials.
The court also ruled that RA 12232 primarily serves as a term-setting law for barangay and SK officials and does not violate the public’s right to vote because it neither abolishes nor indefinitely suspends the BSKE.
Eight of the 15 justices supported the ruling, while five dissented. Two justices did not participate.
The same Supreme Court will consider any petitions challenging RA 12326.
