Comelec to hold special polls to fill late Antipolo solon’s seat

A special election will be conducted in the second congressional district of Antipolo City following the passing of Antipolo City 2nd District Rep. Romeo Acop last December, the Commission on Elections (Comelec) said on Wednesday.

Comelec chairperson George Erwin Garcia said the special election, intended to fill the seat vacated by Acop, is targeted to be held on March 14, 2026.

“Napag-desisyunan namin na mag-conduct ng special election sa Antipolo City 2nd District upang punan ang nabakanteng position ng yumaong Congressman Acop,” Garcia told reporters in a media briefing.

(The Comelec en banc decided to conduct a special election in the second district of Antipolo City to fill the seat vacated by late Congressman Acop.)

Acop, 78, passed away on December 20, 2025 after succumbing to a heart attack.

His political party, the National Unity Party (NUP), previously said the Comelec is mandated by law to hold a special election to fill his House seat.

Traditionally, the Comelec waits for a House of Representatives resolution that officially declares a vacancy in its membership and calls for the conduct of a special election before holding the polls.

However, Garcia said Supreme Court (SC) jurisprudence on the case of Hagedorn vs Comelec ruled that the poll body can hold a special election to fill congressional seats that became vacant even without a resolution from the lower chamber.

“Base sa Saligang Batas, dapat kapag may bakante sa position ng Congressman, dapat si Comelec ay kaagad magpatawag ng special election 60 araw pagkatapos mabakante at di lalagpas sa 90 days,” Garcia said.  

(Under the Constitution, the Comelec is mandated to call for a special election 60 days up to 90 days from the occurrence of the vacancy.)

“Minarapat namin na March 14 isagawa ang halalan,” he added.

(We opted to hold the special election on March 14.)

Under Republic Act 6645, the Comelec is mandated to conduct a special election if a vacancy occurs in the Senate at least 18 months, or in the House of Representatives, at least one year before the next regular election for members of Congress.

Republic Act 7166 provides that the poll body shall call and hold a special election to fill the vacancy not earlier than 60 days nor later than 90 days after the occurrence of the vacancy.

Garcia said the poll body wrote to Speaker Faustino “Bojie” Dy III to inform the House of Representatives of the conduct of the election.

P98 million budget needed

Meanwhile, the Comelec submitted a letter to the Office of the President (OP) requesting assistance on the budget needed for the special election.

An estimated P98 million budget will be required to hold the polls, which will be conducted through manual election.

The Comelec said 713 election precincts are needed to cater to around 300,000 voters in the district, which the poll body said has the largest voting population among congressional districts nationwide.

“Kami ay sumulat sa ating Pangulo, humihingi tayo ng tulong dahil kapag ganitong karaming budget ang kailangan ng Comelec, sinusubukan namin na baka ma-tap ang contingency fund ng OP,” Garcia said.

(We wrote to the President to request for help. When the Comelec needs a budget this huge, we try to ask if we can tap into the contingency fund of the OP.)

“Ang budget ng Comelec for recall and special election na in-approve na nasa General Appropriations Act 2026 ay P11 million lamang,” he added.

(Our current budget for recall and special election under the 2026 GAA is only P11 million.) — JMA, GMA Integrated News