The Commission on Elections (Comelec) said on Saturday that the country’s election law, called the Omnibus Election Code (OEC), is already very old and needs a total makeover.
Comelec Chairman George Garcia explained that the law was created way back in 1985—that’s 40 years ago! At that time, there were no smartphones, no internet, no social media, and elections were very different. Now, the world has changed a lot, but the Philippines is still using the same old rules.
“Hindi lang dapat palitan ng kaunti, kundi baguhin nang buo,” Garcia said. This means he wants a full revision, not just small changes. He said everything must be updated—from voter registration, to filing of candidacy, to rules on disqualification and cancellation of candidates.
In fact, in 2023, Comelec already finished writing a 964-page draft of new rules. These include:
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Making it a crime to file “nuisance” candidacies (like joke candidates who just want attention).
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Allowing candidate substitution only if the candidate dies or is officially disqualified, not just for any reason.
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Stopping early campaigning right after candidates file their certificate of candidacy (COC).
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Updating how much candidates are allowed to spend during campaigns.
They also want to fix problems in the party-list system so that only real underrepresented groups benefit, and to stop wealthy families from controlling too many seats.
Another bold proposal is to finally ban political dynasties—families who keep passing down government power from one relative to another. Garcia said this could be the perfect time to finally put the anti-political dynasty rule in the Constitution into action.
Comelec also asked for more power when it comes to requiring documents for candidates. For example, they want to ask for a birth certificate and other papers to prove someone’s identity and qualifications before running for office.
Meanwhile, Senator Imee Marcos has also filed a bill in the Senate that aims to revise and modernize all election laws, since many parts of the old Code are no longer fit for today’s world.
The big question now: Will lawmakers agree to this overhaul and finally give the Philippines a modern election law—or will politics stop it from happening again?
