Barangay elections

Barangay electionsareelectionsin thePhilippinesin thebarangays,the smallest of theadministrative divisions in the Philippines.Barangays make upcitiesandmunicipalitiesand in turn are made up ofsitiosandpuroks,whose leaders are not elected. Voters of each barangay over 18 years old are eligible to vote for onebarangay captainand sevenbarangay councilors.Together, the barangay captain and barangay councilors make up theSangguniang Barangay(barangay council). Voters aged 15 to 30 years old vote in elections for theSangguniang Kabataan(SK): one SK chairperson and seven SK councilors during the same election. The winning SK chairperson serves as a member of the barangay council.

Barangay captains and SK chairmen are elected viafirst-past-the-post votingsystem, while barangay and SK councilors are elected via theplurality-at-large votingsystem with one barangay as anat-large"district".

While candidates are nominallynonpartisanand do not represent political parties,slatesconsisting of a candidate for a barangay captain and seven barangay councilor candidates are not uncommon; SK slates are also sometimes connected to a slate of a barangay captain. Winning candidates serve for a term of three years, with reelection of up to two more times. Terms of office for barangay officials are usually extended when elections are postponed as a cost-saving measure.

Winning barangay captains in a certain municipality or city elect amongst themselves an Association of Barangay Captains (ABC) president that will serve as their representative in theSangguniang Bayan(municipal council) orSangguniang Panlungsod(city council). ABC presidents in a certain province will elect amongst their representative in theSangguniang Panlalawigan(provincial board). ABC presidents in provincial boards and city councils not under a jurisdiction of a province elect amongst themselves a national president and other officials of theLeague of Barangays of the Philippines.

SK chairmen undergo a similar series ofindirect electionsat every level, although there is no national leadership at the beginning of 2018.

History

In a1981 referendum,the electorate was asked if barangay elections should be done after theconcurrently-held presidential election;the electorate carried the proposal. The Barangay Election Act of 1982 prescribed that the election shall be on May 17, 1982, terms start on June 7, and that terms shall be for six years.

Postponing barangay elections was done several times despite the 1987 Constitution and special laws like the Local Government Code of 1991 but in 2023, the Supreme Court held that the succeeding synchronized Barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan Elections (BSKE) shall be held on the first Monday of December 2025, and every three (3) years thereafter, pursuant toRepublic Act No. 11462.The SC Public Information Office added: "More significantly, the said Decision laid down the criteria to serve as guidelines and principles for the bench, the bar, and the public as regards any government action that seeks to postpone any elections."^[1]

According to law expertMichael Henry Yusingco,political dynasties continue to victimize barangay elections, the latest results of which made genuine political competition impossible.^[2]^[3]

Elections since 1982

Sangguniang Barangay
Date	Law	Term		Status	Total barangays	Turnout^[4]
Date	Law	Years	Started	Status	Total barangays	Total	%
May 17, 1982	BP 222	6	June 7, 1982	Completed		19,302,910	66.35%
May 9, 1988	RA 6653	5	January 1, 1989	Postponed to November 1988		—
November 14, 1988	RA 6679		—	Postponed to 1989		—
March 28, 1989	RA 6679		May 1, 1989	Completed	~42,000	18,876,334	67.50%
May 9, 1994	RA 7160	3	May 9, 1994	Completed	~42,000	22,670,532	64.75%
May 12, 1997	RA 8524	5	May 12, 1997	Completed	~42,000	24,322,413	63.78%
July 15, 2002	RA 9164	3	August 15, 2002	Completed	~42,000	26,533,451	70.30%
October 31, 2005	RA 9340		—	Postponed to 2007	41,995	—
October 29, 2007			November 30, 2007	Completed	41,995	31,979,309	68.14%
October 25, 2010			November 30, 2010	Completed	42,095	34,154,174	70.80%
October 28, 2013			November 30, 2013	Completed	42,028	38,721,421	72.11%
October 30, 2016	RA 10923		—	Postponed to 2017	41,948	—
October 29, 2017	RA 10952		—	Postponed to 2018		—
May 14, 2018	RA 10952		June 30, 2018	Completed		39,977,516	69.67%
May 12, 2020	RA 11462		—	Postponed to 2022	42,001	—
December 5, 2022	RA 11462		—	Postponed to 2023		—
October 30, 2023	RA 11935 GR 263590		January 1, 2023	Completed		To be determined
December 1, 2025	RA 11462		January 1, 2026	Scheduled

Sangguniang Kabataan
Date	Law	Term		Age range	Status	Synched with barangay elections?	Total barangays	Turnout^[5]
Date	Law	Years	Started	Age range	Status	Synched with barangay elections?	Total barangays	Total	%
December 4, 1992	RA 7160	3		15–21	Completed	No	~42,000	3,227,926	77.20%
May 9, 1994	RA 7808		—		Postponed to 1996	—	~42,000	—
May 6, 1996	RA 7808				Completed	No	~42,000	3,340,926	77.89%
May 9, 2001	RA 8524	5	—		Postponed to 2002	—	~42,000	—
July 15, 2002	RA 9164	3	August 15, 2002	15–18	Completed	Yes	~42,000	1,980,829	77.37%
October 31, 2005	RA 9340		—		Postponed to 2007	—	41,995	—
October 29, 2007			November 30, 2007		Completed	Yes	41,995	2,542,408	85.29%
October 25, 2010			November 30, 2010		Completed	Yes	42,095	2,101,405	90.54%
October 28, 2013	RA 10632		—		Postponed up to 2015	Yes	42,028	—
October 30, 2016	RA 10656		—		Postponed to 2017	—	41,948	—
October 29, 2017	RA 10742		—	15–30	Postponed to 2018	—	41,948	—
May 14, 2018	RA 10742		June 30, 2018		Completed	Yes	41,948	13,529,267	65.51%
May 12, 2020	RA 11462		—		Postponed to 2022	—	42,001	—
December 5, 2022	RA 11462		—		Postponed to 2023	—		—
October 30, 2023	RA 11935 GR 263590		January 1, 2023		Completed	Yes		To be determined
December 1, 2025	RA 11462		January 1, 2026		Scheduled	Yes

Indirect elections

Barangay captain

Municipal chapter

Component city chapter

Highly urbanized
or
independent component
city chapter

Provincial chapter

National chapter

SK chairperson