Comelec denies Duterte Youth’s MR, nullifies registration

The Commission on Elections (Comelec) has rejected the motion for reconsideration (MR) filed by the Duterte Youth party-list, which sought to overturn a June 2025 ruling voiding its registration.

In a resolution posted Friday, the Comelec en banc voted 5-1 to reject the MR, thereby affirming the earlier ruling and officially nullifying the party-list’s registration.

“WHEREFORE, premises considered, the Commission (En banc) RESOLVED, as it hereby RESOLVES to DENY the Motion for Reconsideration. The Assailed Resolution is hereby AFFIRMED,” the resolution stated.

The poll body emphasized that the Duterte Youth did not present any compelling arguments to justify reversing the earlier ruling.

The Comelec Second Division’s June 2025 decision stemmed from a case first filed in 2019. It petitioned that Duterte Youth’s registration was void ab initio—or void from the beginning—for failing to comply with jurisdictional requirements such as proper publication and hearing.

Despite this, Comelec Chair George Erwin Garcia said that the decision can still be appealed to the Supreme Court and is not final and executory.

Duterte Youth secured more than 2.3 million votes in the 2025 midterm elections, just behind Akbayan, which would have entitled the party-list to three seats in the 20th Congress.