SAJ Leonen dissents on BSKE postponement

Senior Associate Justice Marvic Leonen dissents on the postponement of the barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan Elections (BSKE) stating that repeated deferrals are an affront to popular sovereignty and democratic governance.

SAJ Leonen issued the powerful dissenting opinion challenging the postponement of the BSKE.

The senior justice strongly cautioned that the repeated legislative rescheduling of local polls fundamentally subverts the constitutional architecture of popular sovereignty and the right of suffrage.

The dissent comes in response to the enactment of Republic Act No. 12326, which extended the terms of local officials to five years and deferred the scheduled 2 November 2026 elections to November 2028.

Justice Leonen anchored his dissent on several critical constitutional objections, highlighting how the fifth postponement since 2016 has transformed an isolated policy exception into a de facto practice allowing incumbents to extend their tenures without facing the electorate.

He emphasized that extending terms via legislative fiat replaces the consent of the ballot box with the backing of Congress and the Executive, eroding popular sovereignty and shifting local officials' accountability away from their constituents.

Furthermore, Leonen asserted that suffrage is a fundamental right rather than a dispensable privilege, meaning legislative scheduling powers cannot be used to indefinitely override the public's right to periodic elections.