Commission on Elections

LAW DEPARTMENT

ELECTION OFFENSES

OMNIBUS ELECTION CODE OF THE

PHILIPPINES
 PROHIBITED ACTS
WHO IS LIABLE FOR VOTE BUYING?
HOW IS IT COMMITTED?
Vote buying is committed by:
ANY PERSON –
a. who gives, offers or promises money
or anything of value;
b. who gives or promises any office or
employment;
c. who makes or offers to make an
expenditure, or cause an expenditure to
be made to any person or association;

in order to induce anyone

or the public to vote for or
against any candidate.
VOTE SELLING is the crime of
one who accepts.
PROHIBITED ACTS

Who commits the

crime of VOTE
SELLING?
ANY PERSON, ASSOCIATION,
CORPORATION, GROUP OR
COMMUNITY who receives,
directly or indirectly any
expenditure or promise of
any office or employment,
public or private, in order to
vote for or against a
candidate.
 PROHIBITED ACTS

What is CONSPIRACY TO BRIBE VOTERS?

It takes place when two or more persons,

whether candidates or not, come to an
agreement to buy and/or sell votes and decide to
commit it.
PROHIBITED ACTS
Is BETTING upon the
result of an election a
crime?

YES, the act of betting or

wagering upon the outcome of
an election is an offense
punishable by law.

Any money or thing of value or

deposit of money or thing of
value put as such bet or wager
shall be forfeited to the
government.
 PROHIBITED ACTS

What is COERCION OF ELECTION

OFFICIALS AND EMPLOYEES?

It is the act of directly or indirectly threatening,

intimidating, terrorizing or forcing any election
official or employee in the performance of his
election functions or duties.
 PROHIBITED ACTS
When is the appoint-
ment of new
employees, creation of
new position, promo-
tion, or giving salary
increases prohibited?

Forty-five (45) days before a

regular election and
Thirty (30) days before a
Special election
PROHIBITED ACTS
Is the TRANSFER of
officers and employees
in the civil service
during election period a
crime?
Yes. Any public official who causes
any transfer or detail of any officer
or employee in the civil service
including public school teachers,
within the election period except
upon prior approval of the
Commission is guilty of an election
offense.
 PROHIBITED ACTS
Is the intervention of
public officers and
employees in election-
related activities
allowed?

NO. The intervention of public

officers in any election campaign
or the act of engaging in any
partisan political activity, except to
vote or to preserve public order, if
he is a peace officer, is an election
offense.
 PROHIBITED ACTS
When is UNDUE INFLUENCE an election
offense?

Undue influence is an election offense when:

a. any person promises any office or employment to any

person or association;
b. any person makes or offers to make an expenditure or
causes an expenditure to be made to any person or
association;

which may induce anyone or the public to vote or not

to vote for any candidate in any election. This is equivalent
to vote buying where the consideration is office,
employment, or expenditure.
 PROHIBITED ACTS
What is ELECTIONEERING? Is it a crime?

It is the act of soliciting votes or undertaking any

propaganda on the day of registration before the
board of election inspectors and on the day of
election, for or against any candidate or any
political party within the polling place, and within
a radius of thirty meters thereof.

YES, it is a crime.
 PROHIBITED ACTS
May prisoners be
released before and
after election?

No prisoner detained in the

national penitentiary, or the
provincial, city or municipal
jail shall leave the premises
thereof
sixty (60) days before and
thirty (30) days after
the election.
 PROHIBITED ACTS

May public funds be used for an

election campaign?

NO. The use of public funds and government

property for any election campaign or for any
partisan political activity is an election offense.
 PROHIBITED ACTS

What government properties may

not be used for political campaign?

• (1) public funds or money deposited with, or

held in trust by, public financing institutions or
by government offices, banks, or agencies;
 PROHIBITED ACTS

What government properties may

not be used for political campaign?

• (2) any printing press, radio, or television

station or audio-visual equipment operated by
the Government or by its divisions, sub-
divisions, agencies or instrumentalities,
including government-owned or controlled
corporations, or by the Armed Forces of the
Philippines; or
 PROHIBITED ACTS

What government properties may

not be used for political campaign?

• (3) any equipment, vehicle, facility, apparatus,

or paraphernalia owned by the government or
by its political subdivisions, agencies including
government-owned or controlled corporations,
or by the Armed Forces of the Philippines
 PROHIBITED ACTS

May government property or funds

be used for campaign under some
guise?

• No! Any person who uses under any guise

whatsoever, directly or indirectly, any of
such government properties or funds for any
election campaign or for any partisan
political activity shall be criminally liable for
an election offense. (Sec. 261.O, OEC)
 PROHIBITED ACTS
May an employee be dismissed or a
tenant ejected for refusing to vote for
a candidate?
• No. No employee or laborer shall be
dismissed, nor a tenant be ejected from his
landholdings for refusing or failing to vote for
any candidate of his employer or landowner.
• Any employee, laborer or tenant so dismissed or
ejected shall be reinstated and the salary or
wage of the employee or laborer, or the share of
the harvest of the tenant, shall be restored to
the aggrieved party upon application to the
proper court.
PROHIBITED ACTS
Is the carrying of deadly
weapons during election a
crime?

YES. The carrying of any deadly

weapon in the polling place and
within a radius of one hundred
meters thereof during the days
and hours fixed by law for the
registration of voters in the
polling place, voting, counting
of votes, or preparation of the
election returns is an election
offense.
 PROHIBITED ACTS
• WHAT IS THE SO-CALLED GUN BAN”?

• It is the prohibition from carrying firearms outside

residence or place of business.
• Any person who, although possessing a permit to
carry firearms, carries any firearms outside his
residence or place of business during the election
period, unless authorized in writing by the
Commission, shall be liable for an election offense:
• Provided, That a motor vehicle, water or air craft
shall not be considered a residence or place of
business or extension hereof.
 PROHIBITED ACTS
• Is there any prohibition on wearing uniform
or using insignia, decorations or regalia
outside the immediate vicinity of one’s place
of work?

• Yes. It is a crime during the campaign period, on

the day before and on election day, for any member
of security or police organization of government
agencies, offices, or government-owned or
controlled corporations, or privately-owned security,
investigative, or intelligence agencies to do so.
 PROHIBITED ACTS
• Is it lawful for any member of a security
or police organization of government
agencies, offices, or government-owned
or controlled corporations, or privately-
owned security, investigative, or
intelligence agencies to bear arms
outside the immediate vicinity of his
place of work?

• No. It is a crime to do so during the campaign

period, on the day before and on election day.
 PROHIBITED ACTS
• What is required when guarding the
residence of private persons or when
guarding private residences, buildings
or offices?

• It is required that prior written approval of

the Commission on Elections shall be
obtained. The Commission shall decide all
applications for authority under this
paragraph within fifteen days from the date
of the filing of such application.
 PROHIBITED ACTS
• From the start of the campaign period
and ending thirty days after election,
what is illegal to do for any member of
the AFP, special forces, home defense
forces, barangay self-defense units and
all other para-military units outside the
camp, garrison or barracks to which he
is assigned or outside his home?

• It is illegal for him to wear his uniform or bear

arms.
 PROHIBITED ACTS

• From the start of the campaign period

and ending on election day, is it legal
for any member of the police force or
AFP, any provincial or sub-provincial
guard, special forces, home defense
forces, barangay self-defense units and
all other para-military units to act as
bodyguard or security guard?

• No. It is illegal for them to serve as bodyguard or

security guard of any public official, candidate or
any other person. It is likewise illegal for the latter
to utilize their services as such.
 PROHIBITED ACTS
• What is required if a candidate needs a
bodyguard?

• The Commission is empowered to assign at the

candidate's choice, any member of the Philippine
Constabulary or the police force to act as his
bodyguard or security guard:
– after due notice and hearing,
– when the life and security of a candidate is in
jeopardy,
– in a number determined by the Comelec but
– not to exceed three per candidate
 PROHIBITED ACTS

When is the release, disbursement or

expenditure of public funds prohibited?

FORTY-FIVE (45) days before a regular election

and

THIRTY (30) DAYS before a special election.

PROHIBITED ACTS
Is the construction of
public works, delivery of
materials, or issuance of
treasury warrants an
election offense?

YES, if it is done during the

period of forty-five (45) days
before a regular election and
thirty (30) days before a special
election.
 PROHIBITED ACTS
Is it lawful for a public official or
employee during 45 days before a regular
election and 30 days before a special
election to release, disburse or expend
any public funds for the Department of
Social Welfare and Development?

No. It is illegal for a public official or employee

including barangay officials and those of government-
owned or controlled corporations and their
subsidiaries to do so. It is illegal to do it even for any
other office in other departments performing functions
similar to the SWD.
 PROHIBITED ACTS
Should a calamity or disaster occur,
where shall releases normally
coursed through the DSWD be
turned over to?

Instead of the DSWD and similar offices, all

releases shall be turned over to, and
administered and disbursed by, the Philippine
National Red Cross, subject to the supervision
of the Commission on Audit or its
representatives.
 PROHIBITED ACTS
Who are not allowed to participate,
directly or indirectly, in the distribution of
any relief or other goods to the victims of
calamity or disaster during the campaign
period?

The candidate and his or her spouse or member of his

family within the second civil degree of affinity or
consanguinity are not allowed to participate. It is a
crime for them to do so.
 PROHIBITED ACTS
May elective provincial,
city, municipal or
barangay officers be
suspended during the
election period?

NO, if the suspension is done

without prior approval of the
COMELEC. Yes, if the "Anti-
Graft and Corrupt Practices Act“
is being applied to the
suspension or removal of the
elective official.
 PROHIBITED ACTS

Is the making of false or untruthful

statements in the application for
registration as a voter a crime?

YES. Knowingly making any false or untruthful

statement relative to any of the data or
information required in the application for
registration is an election offense.
 PROHIBITED ACTS

Is Double registration a crime?

YES. Any person who, being a registered voter,

registers anew without filing an application for
cancellation of his previous registration
commits an election offense.
PROHIBITED ACTS
Is registering in
substitution for
another person a
crime?

YES. Registering in
substitution for another,
whether with or without
the latter's knowledge or
consent, is an election
offense.
 PROHIBITED ACTS

Is tampering or changing any data

or entry in a voter's application for
registration a crime?

Yes, it is an election offense if it is done

without authority,.
 PROHIBITED ACTS

Is the act of falsely certifying or

identifying another as a bona fide
resident of a particular place or
locality a crime?

Yes, when it is done for the purpose of

securing the latter's registration as a voter .
 PROHIBITED ACTS

Is the act of using the voter's

affidavit of another for the purpose
of voting, a crime?

YES. Using the voter's affidavit of another for

the purpose of voting,whether or not he
actually succeeds in voting, is a crime.
 PROHIBITED ACTS
Is the act of transfering the
registration record of a voter a crime?

YES. Transfering the registration record of a

voter to the Book of Voters of another polling
place is a crime,

unless the transfer was due to a change of

address of the voter and the voter was duly
notified of his new polling place.
 PROHIBITED ACTS

Is the act of taking or possessing the

voter's affidavit of another a crime?

Yes, when it is done in order to induce the voter

to withhold his vote, or to vote for or against any
candidate.
 PROHIBITED ACTS

Is the act of giving one’s voter's

affidavit to another a crime?

Yes it is a crime when it is given in consideration

of money or other benefit or promise thereof.
 PROHIBITED ACTS

Is it a crime to remove a certified list

of voters?

YES. The acts of altering, tearing, defacing, or

destroying in any manner, a certified list of
voters are also crimes.
 PROHIBITED ACTS

Is it a crime to transfer to another list

the name of a registered voter from
the official list of voters posted
outside the polling place?

YES. If the transfer is done maliciously.

 PROHIBITED ACTS

Is it a crime to omit the name of a

registered voter from the official list
of voters posted outside the polling
place?

YES, if the omission is done maliciously.

PROHIBITED ACTS

When is voting a
crime?

Voting becomes an election

offense when it is done more
than once in the same
election, or one votes in an
election without being a
registered voter.
 PROHIBITED ACTS

Is it a crime to vote in substitution for

another?

YES, whether or not the substituted voter has

knowledge and/or gives his consent to the act.
 PROHIBITED ACTS

Is it a crime to allow another to

prepare one’s ballot?

Yes, it is a crime when the person allowing or

having his ballot prepared is not illiterate or
physically disabled.
 PROHIBITED ACTS

Is the act of availing of any means or

scheme to discover the contents of
the ballot of a voter a crime?

YES. The act of availing of any means or

scheme to discover the contents of the
ballot of a voter who is preparing or
casting his vote or who has just voted is an
election offense.
 PROHIBITED ACTS

Is it a crime to use a ballot other than

the one given by the board of election
inspectors?

YES, it is a crime to use a ballot other than the

one given by the Board of Election Inspectors.
 PROHIBITED ACTS

Is it a crime to possess more than one

official ballot?

YES, it is a crime to possess more than one

official ballot.
 PROHIBITED ACTS
Is it a crime to arrest, detain or
harass a voter?

Yes, if it is done in such a manner as to:

1. obstruct or prevent the voter from going to the

polling place to cast his vote or
2. Prevent him from returning home after casting
his vote, or to
3. compel him to reveal how he voted.
 PROHIBITED ACTS
When is the act of propagating false and
alarming information or circulating false
orders and messages a crime?

When they relate to the:

–printing of official ballots,
–postponement of the election,
–transfer of polling place or
–general conduct of the election

And it is done for the purpose of disrupting or

obstructing the election process or causing confusion
among the voters.
 PROHIBITED ACTS

Is it a crime to substitute any election

form, or document, or ballot box which
contains official ballots or other
documents used in the election?

Yes, if the person who substitutes it has no legal

authority to do so.
 PROHIBITED ACTS

Is it a crime to take away from the

possession of those having legal custody,
or from the place where they are legally
deposited, any election form or
document or ballot box which contains
official ballots or other documents used
in the election?

Yes, if the person who takes it away has no legal

authority to do so.
 PROHIBITED ACTS

Is it a crime to print official ballots or

election returns in quantities
exceeding those authorized by the
Commission?

Yes it is a crime for any official or employee of

any printing establishment or of the Commission
or any member of the committee in charge of the
printing to print in excess.
 PROHIBITED ACTS

Is it a crime to deliver any official

ballot or election returns to any
person not authorized by law or by
the Commission to receive them?

Yes it is a crime.
 PROHIBITED ACTS

When is the act of

selling, furnishing,
offering, buying, serving
or taking intoxicating
liquor a crime?

When the act is committed on

the days fixed by law for the
registration of voters in the
polling place, or on the day
before the election or on election
day.
PROHIBITED ACTS
When is the act of
opening booths or stalls
for the sale, dispensing
or display of wares,
merchandise or
refreshments a crime?

When the act is done in any

polling place or within a radius
of thirty (30) meters thereof on
election day and during the
counting of votes.
 PROHIBITED ACTS
When is the act of
holding fairs,
cockfights, boxing,
horse races, jai-alai
or any other similar
sports an election
offense?

When it is done on election

day.
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