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MANILA, Philippines — The Commission on Elections has voted to cancel the registration of the Duterte Youth party-list for violating election rules.
In a 2-1 decision dated Wednesday, June 18, the Comelec Second Division granted a 2019 petition filed by four private individuals seeking the party-list’s disqualification, effectively voiding Duterte Youth’s registration.
“We find merit in Petitioners’ contentions,” the ruling read.
The division tackled three issues: the timeliness of the petition, whether Duterte Youth’s registration was void ab initio (from the beginning) and whether the party-list’s registration should be cancelled.
Duterte Youth garnered over 2.3 million votes in the 2025 midterm elections, placing second after Anakbayan. It is poised to secure three seats, only if the Comelec en banc’s decision is reversed through an approved motion for reconsideration.
What, then, led the division to cancel the party-list’s registration?
Timely petition
The poll body held that the petition was filed on time, even if it came months after the 2019 midterm elections, when Duterte Youth had already secured a seat in Congress.
Citing Comelec Resolution 9366 and the Party-List System Act, the division said there is no set period for cancelling a party-list’s registration. This debunks the Duterte Youth’s argument that the petition is moot given its timing.
The poll body explained that not having a prescriptive period keeps party-list groups in check, whether they are compliant with the law and true to their role. Introducing such a limit, it said, would only “undermine the integrity and purpose of the system.”
“It prevents the misuse and abuse of the very system which allowed only those qualified and genuine sectors to benefit from the party-list representation,” the decision read.
Void registration from the start
On the second issue, the Comelec found that Duterte Youth failed to meet the jurisdictional requirements for registration.
Specifically, it did not publish its petition and the commission’s hearing notice in two national newspapers, as required by Comelec Resolution 9366 and the Constitution.
The division said it is the burden of organizations, party-lists and coalitions to know the law when seeking public office.
“Inasmuch as Duterte Youth failed to prove compliance with the jurisdictional requirements of publication and hearing, its registration as a party-list organization is void,” the ruling read.
Comelec said these procedural steps are necessary to give the public a fair chance to examine the party-list’s composition, beliefs and policy platform.
“Duterte Youth cannot merely hide under the convenient excuse that the Commission had not required it to publish its Petition for registration or that the Commission has not set a hearing, as it reflects poorly on the party’s commitment to transparency and accountability,” it added.
Material misrepresentation
The 2019 petition seeking to disqualify Duterte Youth cited the following grounds:
- Its nominees were ineligible under the Party-List System Act
- It had no genuine intention to represent the youth sector
- It promoted or advocated violence
- It was supported by the National Youth Commission, violating independence requirements
- Its registration bid was merely an attempt to mock the electoral process
These grounds fall under those cited in Rule 2, Section 2 of Comelec Resolution 9366, which outlines the basis for opposing the registration of party-list groups.
In 2019, all five nominees of Duterte Youth backed out, after which its chairperson, Ronald Cardema attempted to substitute himself as the group’s first nominee, even though he exceeded the age limit for youth representatives and faced no internal objection.
Comelec rejected Cardema’s bid in August 2019 for material representation. It later upheld the decision in 2020, denying his motion for reconsideration.
“The disqualification of Mr. Cardema as a nominee cannot be viewed in isolation, vis-a-vis the cancellation of Duterte Youth’s registration, because the nomination was not made by Mr. Cardema singly and on his own accord,” the decision read.
“This leads to the conclusion that Duterte Youth endorsed Mr. Cardema's nomination, despite knowing that his qualifications were facially deficient,” it added.
Comelec also pointed out that Duterte Youth tried to sidestep the age requirement by claiming a multisectoral framework, arguing that Cardema represented “young professionals” and the youth.
For the division, the argument “fails to convince.”
“It is farfetched for the party-list to consider the ‘youth’ and ‘young professionals’ separately,” it said, explaining that both are inherently part of the youth.
“[A]wareness of this fact cannot be opportunely denied to accommodate the party’s ineligible nominee,” the second division said.
The group insisted it had “all the freedom” to choose its nominee to represent the youth. Comelec, however, countered that this freedom “is not without limits.”
Promotes violence, unlawful acts
Comelec also ruled that Duterte Youth’s statements against subversive groups and activists were not merely expressions of ideology or debate, but actually constituted “systemic calls to action” seeking to “legitimize violence as a means of governance and dissent suppression.”
Among the examples cited were Duterte Youth’s online posts such as, “Uubusin kayo ng Duterte Youth,” and “Uubusin naming kayo sa lansangan kasama ang mga NPA comrades niyo.”
(Duterte Youth will wipe you out. We will wipe you out in the streets along with your NPA comrades.)
“These are not mere political rhetoric because they explicitly advocate for violence and unlawful action towards a certain class,” Comelec said.
Ultimately, the second division stressed that Duterte Youth’s “last-minute withdrawal and substitution” of its nominees not only mocked the electoral process but also distorted the purpose of the party-list system, violating election laws, rules and regulations.
The poll body’s decision, however, is not yet final. Duterte Youth could file a motion for reconsideration. If it is approved, the decision could be reversed and they would be proclaimed.
