Adormeo v.

comelec
376 SCRA 90
(HOSAKA)
FACTS:
Pet Raymundo Adormeo and private resp Ramon Talaga were the only candidates who filed the certificates
of candidacy for mayor of
Lucena City in the May 14, 2001 elections. Talaga was then the
incumbent mayor.
Adormeo filed a with the Provincial Election Supervisor a Petition To
Deny Due Course to or Cancel Certificate of Candidacy and or
Disqualification of Talaga on the ground that the latter was elected
and had served as city mayor for 3 consecutive terms as follows: 1)
election of May 1992 where he served the full term; 2) election of
May 1995, again he served a full term; and 3) in the recall election
of May 12, 2000 where he served only the unexpired term of
Tagarao after having lost to Tagarao in the 1998 election.
Adormeo contended that Talaga’s candidacy as Mayor was a
violation of Sec 8 Art X of the Constitution---
Sec. 8. The term of office of elective local officials, except
barangay officials, which shall be determined by law, shall be 3
years and no such official shall serve for more than 3 consecutive
terms. Voluntary renunciation of the office for any length of time
shall not be considered as an interruption in the continuity of his
service for the full term for which he was elected.
Talaga claims that he only served for 2 consecutive terms and that
his service from May 2000 was not a full term because he only
served Tagarao’s unexpired term by virtue of the recall election. He
cites the case of Lonzanida giving 2 conditions for the
disqualification 1) that the official has been elected for 3
consecutive terms in the same local govt post; and 2) that he has
fully served 3 consecutive terms.
Comelec division ruled in favor of Adormeo. Comelec en banc
reversed, hence this petition.
HELD:
Talaga is qualified to run for mayor.
Talaga was not elected for 3 consecutive terms having lost his 3rd
bid in the May 11, 1998 elections, said defeat is an interruption in
the continuity of his service as city mayor of Lucena.
The term limit for elective local officials must be taken to refer to
the right to be elected as well as the right to serve in the same
elective position.
Talaga was not elected for 3 consecutive terms and for nearly 2
years he was a private citizen. The continuity of his mayorship was
disrupted by his defeat in the 1998 elections. It was only by virtue
of the recall that he served Tagarao’s unexpired term. This did not
amount to a third full term.
Fr. Bernas’ comment that “if one is elected representative to serve
the unexpired term of another, that unexpired term, no matter how
short, will be considered one term for the purpose of computing the
number of successive terms allowed” only pertains to the members
of the House of Representatives and not to local govt officials.
Neither can Talaga’s victory in the recall election be deemed as
“voluntary renunciation” under the Constitution.