When a politician in the Philippines is behind bars, questions such as if they can still run for office while in jail are being asked. This matters especially among high profile politicians and to those who have recent controversies. In the Philippines, being accused or convicted of major crimes does not automatically ban an individual from running for public office.
Constitutional and Legal Basis
Detained politicians can still run for office, as protected by the constitution and other Philippine laws. Under the 1987 constitution, it provides the qualifications for elective office such as one has to be a natural-born Filipino citizen, registered voter, able to read and write, at least 40 years old, and has been living in the Philippines for at least 10 years. The constitution holds no prohibition for detained officials1.
Similarly, the local government code, section 40 states the specific disqualifications for local officials. And likewise, there were no provisions disallowing detained officials to run for office2.
The Omnibus Election Code, or the Batas Pambansa Blg. 881 provides that those with criminal records can still run and hold public office. However, this comes with certain conditions. An individual can still run for office for as long as they are not convicted by final judgement for crimes of moral turpitude, and as long as their penalty is not for more than 18 months3.
Examples
Through the years, there had been politicians who were convicted, but were still able to run for office. Romeo Jalosjos Sr was a congressman who had been convicted of rape in 1997, and was sentenced to life in jail. However, despite winning for re-elections from behind bars in 1998 and 2001, his seat in 2002 was declared vacant after the court dismissed his appeal. He was released in 2009, but was unable to run in 2013 due to his conviction. Additionally, former President Gloria Arroyo was arrested on charges of electoral sabotage in 2011. She was able to run and even win the re-election twice for the position of congresswoman. Former Senator Leila de Lima was also able to run for re-election from prison while facing charges against her that were eventually dropped. Some of the most recent examples are Apollo Quiboloy and former President Rodrigo Duterte. Quiboloy was charged for child sexual abuse both in the Philippines and in the US. However, he was still able to run for a seat in the 2025 midterm elections. Similarly, during the 2025 midterm elections, former President Duterte was able to run, and even won as the mayor of Davao City despite being detained at The Hague.
Jurisprudence
In the case of Mario Joel Reyes vs People of the Philippines, the former was a provincial governor who had been renewing small scale mining permits despite knowing that the mining limit had been exhausted. Despite being found guilty beyond reasonable doubt by the Sandiganbayan for RA 3019 violations, he was still able to run for office. It was because his case was still under appeal and not yet final and executory. However, he was later disqualified from running for office after the court affirmed the decision of Sandiganbayan of Reyes being guilty for anti-graft and corrupt practices4.
Political and Practical Realities
To be able to run for office while being detained is a conditional right. The ability to run for office from jail is all about the detainee’s legal status, wherein one is only disqualified upon final conviction. Electorates ultimately have the right to choose their representatives regardless if the latter is in jail or not. However, the main limitation in running while detained is campaigning. There are restrictions due to detention that a detained candidate must follow.
- Const. (Phil.), art. VII (1987) ↩︎
- Local Government Code of 1991, Republic Act No. 7160 (1991) (Phil.). ↩︎
- B.P. Blg. 881 (1985) (Phil.) ↩︎
- Supreme Court of the Philippines. (2018). People of the Philippines v. Mario Joel T. Reyes, G.R. No. 221780. Retrieved from https://elibrary.judiciary.gov.ph/thebookshelf/showdocs/23/65745 ↩︎
