G.R. No. 207264 - Reyes vs. Commission on Elections

On 31 October 2012, Joseph Socorro B. Tan filed before the Commission on Elections (COMELEC) an Amended Petition to Deny Due Course or to Cancel the Certificate of Candidacy (COC) of Regina Ongsiako Reyes for Representative of the lone district of Marinduque.
Tan alleged material misrepresentations in Reyes’s COC regarding:

Civil status – declared single though married to Congressman Hermilando I. Mandanas;
Residency – declared resident of Brgy. Lupac, Boac, Marinduque though actually residing in Bauan, Batangas or Brgy. Milagrosa, Quezon City;
Date of birth – declared 3 July 1964 though other records showed 8 July 1959 or 3 July 1960;
Permanent residency/immigration status – declared not a permanent resident of another country though alleged U.S. immigrant;
Citizenship – declared Filipino though alleged to be an American citizen.

Her marriage to Congressman Mandanas is void ab initio for failure to comply with Family Code formalities, thus she remained single and her husband’s residence could not be attributed to her;
Her birthdate is correctly 3 July 1964 as shown by her NSO-issued birth certificate;
Allegations of U.S. permanent residency or citizenship lacked evidentiary support.

On 8 February 2013, Tan filed a Manifestation with Motion to Admit Newly Discovered Evidence, attaching:

An Internet article entitled “Seeking and Finding the Truth about Regina O. Reyes” with an affidavit by its author, Eliseo J. Obligacion, and a Bureau of Immigration database record indicating Reyes is a U.S. citizen and passport holder;
A Certification of Travel Records from the Bureau of Immigration showing Reyes’s use of a U.S. passport in her travels.

On 27 March 2013, the COMELEC First Division granted Tan’s petition and cancelled Reyes’s COC, finding that she:

Failed to comply with Republic Act No. 9225’s twin requirements (oath of allegiance and sworn renunciation of U.S. citizenship), and
Did not meet the one-year residency requirement under Article VI, Section 6 of the 1987 Constitution.

On 8 April 2013, Reyes filed a Motion for Reconsideration, arguing she is a natural-born Filipino citizen who never lost her status, that her marriage only created dual citizenship (thus obviating RA 9225), and that she maintained domicile in Boac, Marinduque; she attached an Affidavit of Renunciation of Foreign Citizenship sworn on 24 September 2012.
On 14 May 2013, the COMELEC En Banc denied her Motion for Reconsideration for lack of merit.
On 18 May 2013, Reyes was proclaimed winner in the 13 May 2013 elections for Representative of Marinduque.
On 5 June 2013, the COMELEC En Banc issued a Certificate of Finality declaring its 14 May 2013 Resolution final and executory. Reyes thereafter took her oath of office before the Speaker of the House.

Whether the COMELEC retained jurisdiction over Reyes’s qualifications after her proclamation and oath, or whether jurisdiction passed to the House of Representatives Electoral Tribunal (HRET).
Whether Reyes’s proclamation and taking of oath before the House Speaker divested the COMELEC of jurisdiction.

Whether the COMELEC gravely abused its discretion by admitting Tan’s “newly discovered evidence” without testimony or opportunity for Reyes to controvert it.
Whether Reyes was denied due process in the COMELEC’s summary proceedings.

Whether the COMELEC gravely abused its discretion in declaring Reyes not a Filipino citizen and lacking residency.
Whether enforcement of RA 9225 imposes additional qualifications beyond those in the 1987 Constitution.