Philippine Election Law of 1907

Core definitions and statutory construction

Section 2 defines “hoard of inspectors” (and “the hoard”) as the hoard of inspectors of election and the poll clerk.
Section 2 provides that the hoard acts through its chairman upon a majority vote, and the poll clerk has neither voice nor vote in proceedings.
Section 2 provides that when a provincial board or municipal council is charged with an act, it is deemed to include the Municipal Board of the city of Manila for elections required in Manila.
Section 2 provides that when a municipal secretary or provincial treasurer is charged with an act, it is deemed to include the secretary of the Municipal Board of the city of Manila for Manila elections.

Election schedules and offices covered

Section 3 requires elections in all the municipalities in the provinces entitled to send Delegates to the Philippine Assembly and in the city of Manila.
Section 3 sets the first Delegate election under this Act for the thirtieth day of July, nineteen hundred and seven, with Delegates taking office upon the convening of the Philippine Assembly and holding office until successors are elected and qualified.
Section 3 requires subsequent Delegate elections on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in November of nineteen hundred and nine and each odd-numbered year thereafter, with Delegates taking office on the first day of January next following and serving two years (or until successors are elected and qualified).
Section 3 requires provincial elections for provincial governor and third member of the provincial board on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in November of nineteen hundred and seven and each odd-numbered year thereafter.
Section 3 sets the term of provincial governor and third members elected in nineteen hundred and seven from the first Monday of March, nineteen hundred and eight until including the thirty-first day of December, nineteen hundred and nine, and provides that thereafter provincial governors and third members take office on the first of January next succeeding their election.
Section 3 requires municipal elections for municipal presidents and vice-presidents on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in November of nineteen hundred and seven and on the same day of each odd-numbered year thereafter, with officers taking office on the first Monday of January following and serving two years.
Section 3 requires municipal elections for councilors on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in November of nineteen hundred and seven to elect successors whose terms expire the first Monday of January, nineteen hundred and eight, with subsequent councilor elections held on the first Tuesday after the first Monday of November of nineteen hundred and eleven and every fourth year thereafter.
Section 3 governs continuity for councilors elected in nineteen hundred and six under Act Numbered Eighty-two, providing that they hold office until the first day of January, nineteen hundred and ten, followed by elections to elect their successors.
Section 3 limits Delegate-election “townships” (in named provinces) to the purpose of electing Delegates to the Philippine Assembly and provides that other election duties are performed by the provincial board with provincial secretary duties performed by the township secretary; election expenses are borne by the townships where held.

Governor-General power to postpone elections

Section 3 allows the Governor-General, with the consent of the Philippine Commission, to postpone any municipal or provincial election for a time deemed necessary.
Section 3 authorizes postponement when the presence of landronism or analogous cause, or sedition or rebellion or analogous cause, or public calamity or epidemic makes postponement conducive to the public interest.
Section 3 provides the election rule: in all elections held under this Act, a plurality of the votes legally cast elects.

Vacancies and special elections

Section 4 requires that when a vacancy occurs in an elective provincial office, the Governor-General appoints a suitable person to fill the vacancy for the unexpired term until an election and qualification of a successor.
Section 4 requires that when a vacancy occurs in an elective municipal office, the vacancy is filled by appointment by the provincial board, and the appointee serves until the first of January following the next general election.
Section 4 provides that if the next general election falls in the middle of the term, the successor is elected for the unexpired term.
Section 4 requires a special election proclamation by the Governor-General when there is a failure to elect a Delegate, or when a Delegate-elect dies or becomes disqualified before the beginning of the official term.
Section 4 requires that the special election date be not less than forty nor more than ninety days, counted from the date of the proclamation.
Section 4 limits special elections for Delegate vacancies: a special election is not held except in a failure to elect situation, unless the vacancy occurs on or before the first day of February of the last year of the term of office, or unless it occurs thereafter and a special session of the Assembly is called to meet before the next general election.
Section 4 requires that upon creation of a new municipality, the Governor-General calls a special election held not more than three months after the call by qualified voters of the new municipality, unless a general election occurs within that period or the Act creating the municipality provides otherwise.
Section 4 prescribes the special election results for new municipalities:
- A president, vice-president, and the number of councilors appropriate to the municipality’s class are chosen.
- Councilors are elected in two groups based on vote totals: the one-half receiving the smaller number of votes serve a term expiring on January first following the general election next after the election, and the one-half receiving the larger number of votes serve two years longer.
- Tied candidates (where division cannot be made) have their terms determined by lot under Section 26 of the Act.
Section 4 states that for new municipalities, the municipality comes into existence as a separate corporate organization upon the qualification of the newly elected president, vice-president, and a majority of the newly elected council.
Section 4 provides that officers of the old municipality or municipalities residing in the territory comprising the new municipality continue in office unless an entire barrio or barrios are included in the separation.
Section 4 requires that for the first election in new municipalities, the provincial board divides territory into election precincts, appoints inspectors, poll clerks, and a suitable person to perform municipal secretary duties, designates polling places, and provides election supplies, with election expenses payable by the new municipality.
Section 4 provides that election inspectors meet and register qualified voters; the election funds are advanced by the province and later collected from the new municipality; for the first election, the provincial board acts as the board of canvassers.
Section 4 requires that after a provincial or municipal election results in failure to legally elect one or more officers and a special election is held and also results in failure, the Governor-General appoints an officer for the unfilled provincial office by and with the consent of the Philippine Commission, and the provincial board appoints a duly qualified elector for the unfilled municipal office by and with consent of the Governor-General; appointees hold office for the term that should have been filled by election.

Legislative structure and delegate rules

Section 5 establishes that the Philippine Assembly consists of eighty-one members, apportioned among provinces by the list provided, including Albay (three) through Zambales (one).
Section 5 provides for adding another province: representation is added in addition to the number eighty-one, in the ratio of one for every ninety thousand of population and one for an additional major fraction.
Section 5 caps representation: the total number of Delegates shall not exceed one hundred.
Section 5 requires readjustment of apportionment when provincial boundaries change or new provinces are created, using the basis of the original adjustment.
Section 5 requires that if a new province is entitled to more than one Delegate, it is divided into as many districts as it is entitled to Delegates, with districts composed of contiguous and compact territory containing, as nearly as practicable, an equal number of inhabitants.
Section 5 grants legislative privileges: members are privileged from arrest during session attendance and while going to and returning from session, except for treason, each of the peace, and felony punishable by death or imprisonment for four years or more for purposes of this Act; members are not questioned elsewhere for speeches or debate in either house.
Section 5 prohibits appointment conflicts:
- No Delegate may be appointed to any civil office under the authority of the Government of the Philippine Islands created or whose emoluments were increased during the Delegate’s elected term, except in the cases described by the prohibition itself.
- No person holding any office under the Government of the Philippine Islands may be a member of the Assembly during continuance in office.

Delegate and legislature compensation rules

Section 6 provides that, unless otherwise provided by law, each Delegate receives twenty pesos per day for each day of actual sitting of the Assembly.
Section 6 provides that each Delegate also receives actual and necessary transportation and subsistence expenses for himself only from residence to Manila and return, once for each session attended.
Section 6 provides that no other compensation or expenses are paid to any Delegate.
Section 6 requires the Assembly to choose a Recorder who receives twenty pesos for each day of the session and additional days authorized by Assembly resolution to complete records, until otherwise provided by law.
Section 6 authorizes additional clerks, stenographers, pages, and subordinate employees during session, appointed by the Assembly at salaries fixed by it not exceeding that of the Recorder; the total for these purposes is capped at twenty-five thousand pesos for the first session.
Section 6 designates the Executive Secretary as the custodian of the Legislature’s records.
Section 6 authorizes stationery for Assembly use by the Director of Printing up to not exceeding five thousand pesos for the first session.

Districting and apportionment implementation

Section 7 provides that each Assembly district elects one Delegate.
Section 7 limits province totals: the whole number elected from any province cannot exceed the number prescribed for that province in Section 5.
Section 7 divides provinces into named Assembly districts, enumerating the districts and the municipalities comprising each district for provinces including Albay, Ambos Camarines, Batangas, Bohol, Bulacan, Cagayan, Capiz, Cebu, Ilocos Norte, Ilocos Sur, Iloilo, La Laguna, La Union, Leyte, Manila, Misamis, Occidental Negros, Oriental Negros, Pampanga, Pangasinan, Rizal, Samar, Sorsogon, Tarlac, and Tayabas.
Section 7 requires provincial boards within ten weeks after passage to cause to be prepared and filed with the Executive Secretary an outline map or plan of each Assembly district showing municipalities (or portions) included.
Section 7 requires each district map or plan to be posted and kept posted in at least three conspicuous public places in each municipality and barrio composing the district, at least ninety days prior to every general election.

Precincts and polling places rules

Section 8 provides that each municipality has at least one election precinct.
Section 8 requires municipal councils of municipalities containing more than four hundred voters to divide the municipality into precincts at least sixty days before the first election under the Act, making each precinct contiguous and compact and limiting each precinct to not to exceed four hundred voters.
Section 8 allows the municipal council to define precincts for barrio or barrios where they are made part of a district while the rest of the municipality is excluded from that district.
Section 8 requires redistricting if registered voters in any precinct exceed four hundred, to occur at least four months before the following election.
Section 8 requires precinct boundary maps/plans to be posted and kept posted:
- at the polling place(s) and in two other conspicuous public places in each precinct for at least forty-five days before each election; and
- all precinct plans must be kept posted at the municipal building for the same number of days before each election.
Section 8 requires that notice and plan of redivision be filed with the provincial treasurer.
Section 9 requires municipal councils, at least sixty days before each general election, to designate in each precinct a place for holding elections and meetings of the board of inspectors for registration.
Section 9 requires that if practicable, the designated place be a room on the lower floor of reasonable size sufficient to accommodate twenty electors at one time outside guard rails.
Section 9 prohibits election-day liquor sales and cockfights at the designated building:
- no liquors sold from designation until the day after election; and
- no cockfights held there during the same period.
Section 9 mandates election-day operational layout:
- not more than one polling place in the same room, and not more than two polling places in the same building;
- municipal councils must provide ballot boxes, guard rail, booths, stationery, and supplies, preserve them when not in use, and deliver ballots/boxes for each polling place at opening of polls;
- voting booths must be at least one for every fifty voters in the precinct, with specified booth dimensions and features including indelible pencil availability and adequate lighting;
- guard rails must be at least two meters from ballot boxes and booths, and no box/booth placed within two meters of such rail; guard rail entrances/exits must be separate;
- booths must be reachable only by passing within the guard rail and must be arranged so the booths, ballot boxes, election officers, and all parts except inside booths are in plain view of election officers and persons just outside the guard rail.
Section 9 requires printed copies of Act No. 1582 in English and Spanish to be hung and kept in conspicuous available positions in every polling place on registration days and election day for voter consultation.
Section 10 prohibits intoxicating liquors and election commercial structures in specified distances:
- no intoxicating liquors sold or dispensed within thirty meters of any polling place on any registration day;
- no intoxicating liquors sold or dispensed within one hundred and fifty meters of any polling place on any election day during voting hours;
- no temporary booths/tents/shelters for sale/display of goods or refreshments, solid or liquid, or for any other purpose whatsoever, may be erected or maintained within those distances during those days/hours;
- no cockfight may be held in any municipality upon any election day.
Section 9 prohibits using as a polling place any building owned or inhabited by a person who is a candidate for any office for which votes are to be cast in that precinct.

Election officers, appointment, and oaths

Section 15 requires municipal councils to appoint on the first Tuesday of June, nineteen hundred and seven, and on the first Tuesday of September of each year thereafter during which a regular election is held three inspectors of election and one poll clerk for each election precinct.
Section 15 provides that inspectors and poll clerks hold office for two years from the Tuesday of appointment.
Section 15 requires political-party balancing where political parties/branches polled thirty per centum or over of votes at the preceding general election:
- two inspectors must belong to the party with the largest number of votes in the municipality; and
- the other inspector belongs to the party with the next largest number of votes.
Section 15 allows, for the first election under this law, inspector and poll clerk appointments regardless of political party membership.
Section 15 provides eligibility restrictions:
- inspectors are ineligible to be elected or appointed to any other office during their term;
- no person holding public office or a candidate for public office may be eligible to appointment as inspector or poll clerk or serve as such after becoming a candidate.
Section 15 requires inspectors and poll clerks to be qualified electors of their respective precincts, of good character, not convicted of an offense involving moral turpitude, and able to read, write, and speak English, Spanish, or the local dialect understandingly.
Section 15 requires each appointed officer to take and subscribe to an Oath of Inspector before the municipal secretary within twenty days after the notice of appointment.
Section 15 requires a certificate of appointment issued by the municipal president specifying precinct, appointee name, and term expiration.
Section 15 governs selection of chairman by inspectors meeting:
- inspectors appoint one of their number chairman, and if no majority agrees, they draw lots.
Section 15 governs vacancies and non-appearance:
- if a vacancy exists at the meeting or an inspector is absent, inspectors select a substitute matching the same political party for the absent inspector until the absent inspector appears or the council fills the vacancy;
- if all inspector offices are vacant or no inspector appears within one hour after the time fixed for opening the meeting, qualified electors of the precinct (not less than ten) may designate three qualified voters to fill vacancies or act in place of inspectors until vacancies are filled.
Section 15 requires that substitute inspectors take the oath before the chairman (or among themselves if the chairman is not present), and that oaths be forwarded to the municipal secretary for filing.
Section 16 declares that all meetings of the board of inspectors are public and that the board and each member have full authority to preserve peace and good order around the polls and enforce obedience to lawful commands.
Section 16 authorizes written orders directing a peace officer to take into custody and detain persons who refuse to obey lawful command or disturb proceedings, but such orders must not prevent the detained person from exercising the right to vote at that election.
Section 16 provides that the written order is executed by the peace officer to whom it is delivered or, if none is present, by another person deputed by the board in writing.

Voter registration system and challenges

Section 17 provides that the board of inspectors for each precinct holds four meetings for voter registry, including adding or striking names and completing the register.
Section 17 provides timing: each meeting except the last begins at seven o’clock in the morning and continues until seven o’clock in the evening, with not more than one intermission of one hour and half.
Section 17 requires the board to prepare a list of names and residences of persons qualified to vote who present themselves for registration, arranged in columns including a consecutive numbering system, surnames in alphabetical order, Christian names, cedula numbers, and residences.
Section 17 requires spaces after each set of surnames for additions in later meetings and requires the board to label added surnames as “added at the second meeting,” “added at third meeting,” or “added at fourth meeting.”
Section 17 requires each registrant to exhibit his cedula for the calendar year in which the election is held or to have age exemption noted in the cedula column.
Section 17 requires administration of a prescribed Elector Oath to each applicant, covering eligibility, absence of disqualifications, tax delinquency absence, allegiance, and compliance with election laws and orders.
Section 17 requires oaths to be filed with the municipal secretary, retained until completion of registry lists and filing of the oath for the next general election.
Section 17 requires certification after each registry meeting that the list as then appears is true and correct for names and residences of qualified persons who personally appeared and requested registration.
Section 17 requires temporary deposit of a certified copy in the municipal secretary’s office on the Monday following the second and fourth meetings for public inspection until the next meeting or election day; other copies are retained by inspectors for inspection by qualified voters from eight o’clock in the morning to five o’clock in the afternoon on days excluding Sundays and legal holidays.
Section 17 permits challenges during any of the first four meetings by any inspector or any qualified elector of the precinct.
Section 17 empowers the board to examine challenged persons, take evidence it deems necessary, and order registration action (place on list or strike from list) based on facts.
Section 17 allows the board to subpoena witnesses and compel attendance and testimony, with witness fees and service fees paid in advance by the party requesting subpoena.
Section 17 grants a judicial-type appeal procedure:
- if requested, the board issues a brief certificate and statement of its action and evidence;
- either party or a person refused registration may apply to the provincial board or to the judge of the Court of First Instance in the judicial district or contiguous district if more accessible;
- the first-filed tribunal has exclusive jurisdiction;
- application may be accompanied by affidavits; copies must be served on the board and parties, with rebuttal affidavits allowed;
- the board may be represented by the provincial fiscal or delegate a member to appear, with travel expenses not exceeding amounts allowed to provincial officials paid by the municipality.
Section 17 requires that at the meeting on the Saturday preceding election, inspectors note on the registry list opposite each changed name the date of the order and the name of the tribunal that issued it.
Section 17 provides that no name shall be added or stricken at the last meeting except under orders.
Section 17 states that no person votes in any general or special election under this Act unless his name appears in the voters register as completed by the board of inspectors.
Section 18 provides that at special elections there is only one meeting for registry, held on the ten days “lit’ day” designated for the special election, using the register of voters for the last preceding general election to which qualifying additions are made.

Pay, expenses, and election ballots

Section 19 provides compensation for inspectors and poll clerks:
- each inspector receives pay for each day of actual service at board meetings except the meeting on the Saturday before election, and each inspector receives two days’ pay for election day;
- each poll clerk receives pay for each day of service during the absence of a member and two days’ pay for election day.
Section 19 requires municipal councils to set the pay rate, but it cannot be less than two or more than five pesos per day, and cannot be changed during the term of office.
Section 19 requires that pay of election boards and election expenses for stationery, ballots, and other expenses be paid from the municipality’s treasury.
Section 20 provides that official ballots are provided at public expense for every election held under this Act.
Section 20 mandates that each polling place has but one form of ballot, with a specified physical format (a strip paper shape) and printed heading showing the title of each office to be voted for and the number of candidates.
Section 20 requires the ballot instruction legend in both Spanish and English:
- voters must not make any mark or write anything other than the names of candidates voted for;
- any violation invalidates the ballot.
Section 20 specifies that the ballot is to appear in Spanish and English, using specified typographic styles and dimensions when folded.
Section 20 requires that on the upper outside fold there be printed uniform identifiers including the words “Official Ballot,” a representation of the Coat of Arms of the Philippine Islands, the election precinct, and the date of the election.
Section 20 sets a contingency for failure to receive ballots or their destruction: the provincial board (or if not time, the municipal council) procures another set as nearly like the prescribed ballots as circumstances permit, uniform within the precinct.
Section 20 requires at least thirty colored-paper sample ballots per precinct to be furnished for posting and demonstration; five samples must be posted in public places within the precinct including one at the polling place, and sample ballots are not used for voting or counted and must not bear written actual candidate names.
Section 20 requires ballot requisitions by the provincial treasurer from the Director of Printing in the usual form, in a quantity calculated as one and one-half as many ballots as registered voters at the last preceding election plus ten per centum additional.
Section 20 requires requisitions at least two and one-half months before the date of the election and requires that requisitions specify offices to be filled in each precinct.

Qualifications and disqualifications for office

Section 12 provides Delegate qualifications:
- at the time of election, a Delegate must be a qualified elector of the district, owe allegiance to the United States, and be not less than twenty-five years of age.
Section 12 provides provincial governor and third member qualifications:
- at election, they must be qualified electors of the province;
- must have been residents in the province for at least one year prior to election;
- must owe allegiance to the United States; and
- must be not less than twenty-five years of age.
Section 12 provides an exception where the Governor-General appoints a provincial governor or third member under existing law.
Section 12 provides elective municipal officer qualifications:
- must be a qualified voter and resident in the municipality for