Why losing candidates can only be appointed to gov't post a year after elections

Losing candidates during the 2025 national and local elections can now be appointed to government positions beginning Wednesday, May 13, 2026.

According to Comelec chairperson George Garcia, a candidate who lost an election can only be appointed to a government post one year after the election in which they ran.

Why is this so?

Garcia explained that this provision is stated in the 1987 Philippine Constitution to avoid the abuse of the power of appointment and limit opportunities for public service.

“Section 6 of Article 9-B of the Philippine Constitution po ang nagsasabing bawal i-appoint [within a year] sa pamahalaan ang mga natalo sa kahit anong halalan. Ito ay upang hindi maabuso ang power of appointment at magkaroon ng equal opportunity for public service,” Garcia said.

(Section 6 of Article IX-B of the Philippine Constitution states that losing candidates in any election cannot be appointed to government positions [within a year]. This is to prevent abuse of the power of appointment and to ensure equal opportunity for public service.)

“Puede na po mag-appoint ngayon araw ng mga natalo nung 2025 NLE (National and Local Elections),” Garcia said when clarified that appointments are already allowed beginning Wednesday.

(Today, those who lost the 2025 NLE may be appointed.)

Under Section 6 of Article IX-B of the Philippine Constitution, “No candidate who has lost in any election shall, within one year after such election, be appointed to any office in the Government of any government-owned or controlled corporations or in any of its subsidiaries.”

The country held its NLE on May 12, 2025.

Garcia made the statement following reports of a Cabinet revamp and speculation that former Interior and Local Government Secretary Benhur Abalos Jr., who failed to secure a Senate seat, may be appointed to a Cabinet post anew.

This came after the alleged resignation of Henry Aguda as chief of the Department of Information and Communications Technology.

"An appointment is always a prerogative of the appointing authority, subject only to the limitations provided by law. Whatever the reason for the appointment is, it is usually a matter of tradition, respected, and left to his (President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.) wisdom,” he added.

On Tuesday, Palace Press Officer Undersecretary Claire Castro said there is no information yet on whether there will be changes in the Cabinet under the Marcos administration.

“Sa ngayon po ay wala pa rin pong ipinapaabot sa atin na update. Pero kapag mayroon, ibibigay ko po agad sa inyo,” Castro told reporters at a press conference.

(Right now, we haven't received any updates, but if there are, I will give them to you immediately.)

Asked if Marcos’ trust and confidence in his Cabinet secretaries are still intact despite everything happening, she simply said “yes.”

Abalos served as DILG secretary from 2022 to 2024 before he filed his resignation to run for senator in the 2025 polls. — RSJ, GMA News