CEBU CITY, PHILIPPINES — The Commission on Elections (Comelec) en banc has denied the motion for reconsideration filed by former Mandaue City mayoralty candidate Jonas Cabungcal Cortes, affirming the cancellation of his Certificate of Candidacy (COC) for the May 12, 2025 national and local elections.
In a resolution promulgated on January 30, 2026, the poll body upheld the December 16, 2025 ruling of its First Division, which granted the petition filed by registered voters Ines Corbo Necesario and Julita Oporto Narte.
The First Division earlier ruled that Cortes committed material misrepresentation when he declared in his COC that he was eligible to run for mayor of Mandaue City.
The petitioners, Necesario and Narte, argued that Cortes falsely claimed eligibility despite a decision by the Office of the Ombudsman finding him guilty of grave misconduct and imposing the penalty of dismissal from government service, with the accessory penalty of perpetual disqualification from public office.
In denying Cortes’ motion, the COMELEC En Banc ruled that the arguments he raised merely reiterated issues already considered and resolved by the First Division, finding no sufficient reason to reverse its earlier findings.
The Commission stressed that under Section 78 of the Omnibus Election Code, a COC may be cancelled if a candidate makes a false representation of a material fact, including eligibility for the office sought as required under Section 74 of the same law.
COMELEC further held that decisions of the Office of the Ombudsman imposing the penalty of dismissal are immediately executory, even if an appeal is pending, unless restrained by a competent court.
As such, the poll body ruled that at the time Cortes filed his COC, the penalty of dismissal and its accessory penalty of perpetual disqualification were already effective, rendering him ineligible to run for public office.
“The declaration of eligibility was false and pertained to a material qualification affecting respondent’s capacity to run for public office,” the Commission said, rejecting Cortes’ claim that his declaration was made in good faith and was merely a legal conclusion.
The En Banc also dismissed Cortes’ claim of denial of due process, noting that he was properly served, was able to file a verified answer, and was allowed to fully present his defenses.
The Commission added that enforcing eligibility requirements is a constitutional duty and that allowing disqualified candidates to run undermines the integrity of the electoral process.
Aside from affirming the cancellation of Cortes’ COC, the COMELEC En Banc ordered that the records of the case be forwarded to the Commission’s Law Department for the conduct of a preliminary investigation on the possible election offense aspect of the case.
The resolution was signed by COMELEC Chairman George Erwin M. Garcia and Commissioners Imee P. Ferolin, Rey E. Bulay, Ernesto Ferdinand P. Maceda Jr., Nelson J. Celis, Mariano Nasaggal, and Noli Pipo.
Cortes reacts, may raise case to SC
In a statement posted on his official Facebook page, Cortes reacted, saying that the ruling was part of an effort by his political opponents to retain power through legal means rather than through elections.
“Our opponents are trying to hold on to power not by winning the votes, but by using technicalities, dismissals, and disqualifications,” Cortes said.
He noted that the denial of his motion came a day after the dismissal of his election protest and questioned the timing of the ruling.
Cortes further claimed that the issue on his eligibility was revived despite two restraining orders issued by the Supreme Court, and linked the ruling to his camp’s call for a manual recount of votes.
“Despite two restraining orders from the Supreme Court, this recycled issue has been revived, right after we exposed how a manual recount was denied, even when a 7,101-vote margin is threatened by over 20,000 questionable ballots,” he said.
Maintaining that he did not commit any misrepresentation, Cortes said the cases cited against him were not yet final when he filed his candidacy.
“Let me be clear: I did not misrepresent anything,” Cortes said. He said there is no final decision in the cases being used against him, adding that these were still under appeal when he filed his candidacy.
In one case, he said, the Court of Appeals has already reversed the ruling they rely on. “Under the law, non-final cases cannot cancel a candidacy or erase the people’s votes.”
Cortes said that he will tread on this fight for the truth and bring this matter to the Supreme Court, for the third time, fueled by hope and the people’s cry of justice.
“This is no longer just about me. It is about whether technicalities can silence the will of the voters. We will continue this fight—calmly, lawfully, and for the people of Mandaue City,” the former mayor added.
| Written by Mitchelle L. Palaubsanon
