SC upholds 4-year term for barangay, SK officials

The Supreme Court has affirmed the constitutionality of a law extending the term of office for barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan (SK) officials from three to four years.

In an en banc session on Tuesday, the SC denied a series of consolidated petitions challenging Republic Act No. 12232. The law sets the next Barangay and SK (BSK) elections on the first Monday of November 2026 and every four years thereafter, effectively rescheduling the polls originally set for December 2025.

Current barangay officials will remain in their posts until their successors are elected and qualified.

The ruling, penned by Associate Justice Jhosep Y. Lopez, rejected arguments that the law amounted to an invalid postponement of elections and violated the public’s right to vote.

The Court emphasized that Article X, Section 8 of the Constitution expressly grants Congress the authority to determine the term of barangay officials, who are not covered by the standard three-year term for other local officials. This authority, the Court said, includes setting when a new term begins, as long as the period is reasonable.

The high tribunal clarified that RA 12232 is a “term-setting law,” not a measure to postpone elections. As such, the parameters set in Macalintal v. COMELEC—which governs election postponements—do not apply.

The Court further held that the law does not infringe on the right to suffrage, stressing that elections remain “regular, periodic, and certain,” allowing the electorate to hold officials accountable at defined intervals.

It added that the law is not discriminatory, noting that the Constitution itself allows barangay officials to have a distinct term. The Court pointed out that barangays, as the smallest political units, operate closely with communities and within simpler governance structures compared to other local governments.