Amendments to provincial canvass (Sec. 160)
- Section 160 as amended requires the provincial board of canvassers to meet as soon as possible within fifteen days next following the day of the election.
- The provincial treasurer must then produce before the provincial board the statements of election returns in the different precincts that may have been delivered to him.
- The provincial board must proceed to canvass as soon as all the statements are before it but not later than fifteen days next following the date of the election, and must canvass all votes cast in the province for national, provincial and city candidates.
- After the canvass, the board must make separate statements of the votes received by each candidate for President and Vice-President, Senator and Member of the House of Representatives for each legislative district, and by each candidate for provincial or city office.
- The board must proclaim, in accordance with the statements, who has been elected to the House of Representatives from each legislative district and who has been elected to each provincial and city office, and must post true copies of the proclamation in a conspicuous place for not less than one week.
Certification, transmission, and copies for President & VP (Sec. 160)
- For President and Vice-President, the provincial board must certify and transmit the returns as provided in the Constitution.
- The board must prepare the certificate of election returns, supported by a statement of votes by precinct, for the election of President and Vice-President:
- in quintuplicate;
- by the use of carbon papers or such other means as the Commission on Elections shall prescribe;
- so that all five copies are produced in one hand writing.
- Each and every sheet of each and every copy must bear the official seal of the province or city.
- After completion, the certificates and statements must be enclosed in envelopes furnished by the Commission on Elections and sealed, and distributed immediately as follows:
- Original copy plus two complete sets of carbon papers to the President of the Senate.
- Second copy plus the remaining two sets of carbon papers to the Commission on Elections.
- Third and fourth copies to each of the two major political parties mentioned in Section seventy-six of this Code, delivered to the party representatives stationed for that purpose in the office of the Commission on Elections.
- Fifth copy to be kept on file in the office of the provincial or city treasurer.
- The provincial or city treasurer (or authorized representative) must deliver personally the addressee copies to the respective offices.
Access by candidates and watchers (Sec. 160)
- Any candidate for President or Vice-President is entitled, personally or by a duly authorized representative, to examine, inspect, photograph, copy, or obtain a certified true copy of:
- the copies of the certificates of election returns and supporting statements of votes by precinct;
- and the carbon papers used
- that are filed with the Commission on Elections and with the provincial or city treasurer.
- Access is subject to rules and regulations the Commission on Elections shall promulgate to safeguard the integrity of the documents.
- Candidates may appoint watchers to be present at, and take note of, all proceedings of the provincial board of canvassers and of any committee and subcommittees the board may appoint.
Canvass of Senators (amended Sec. 166)
- Thirty days after the election is held, the Commission on Elections must meet in session to publicly count the votes cast for Senators.
- The registered candidates in the number of senators required to be elected who obtained the highest number of votes must be declared elected.
- A copy of the statement of the Commission on Elections must be furnished to the Secretary of the Senate and to each elected candidate.
- If, from the canvass, two or more candidates have received the same number of votes for the last place in the number to be elected:
- the Commission on Elections must record that fact in the corresponding statement;
- it must hold another public session for the drawing of lots after three days notice to all tied candidates so they may be present if they so desire;
- it must proclaim the candidate favored by luck;
- the proclaimed candidate must have the right to assume office as if elected by plurality vote.
- The Commission on Elections must make a statement of the procedure, results, and subsequent proclamation of the drawing of lots, and send certified copies to the Secretary of the Senate and to each tied candidate.
Joint Congress canvass for President & VP (Sec. 166-A, 166-D)
- Section 166-A requires that on the second Tuesday of December next following the election, Congress must assemble in joint session and canvass the returns of votes cast for President and Vice-President as provided in the Constitution.
- Section 166-D provides that upon completion of the counting, the persons with the highest number of votes for President and Vice-President must be declared elected.
- If two or more candidates have an equal and highest number of votes for either office, the joint session of Congress must choose the President or Vice-President by a majority vote of all the Members of Congress in joint session assembled.
Handling incomplete or altered returns (Sec. 166-B)
- When the certificate of election returns for every election for President and Vice-President, duly certified by the board of canvassers of each province or city and transmitted to the President of the Senate as provided for in the Constitution, appears incomplete:
- the President of the Senate must require the concerned board of canvassers to transmit to his office by personal delivery the statement from precincts not included in the returns transmitted.
- The supplemental certificate of election returns allowed for incompleteness must be prepared and transmitted in the same manner as provided in Section 160.
- The supplemental certificate of election returns must reach the Senate President not later than twelve o’clock noon on the third Tuesday of December.
- When any certificate of election returns or supporting statement of votes by precinct bears erasures or alterations that may cast doubt as to the veracity of the number of votes stated therein and may affect the result of the election:
- Congress, upon request of the concerned presidential or vice presidential candidates, must count the votes as they appear in the statements of election returns from all precincts in the province or city in question for the sole purpose of verifying the actual number of votes cast for President or Vice-President, or both offices.
- The President of the Senate must require the concerned provincial or city treasurer to deliver personally to Congress the copy of such statements canvassed by the provincial or city board of canvassers.
- The President of the Senate may require the Commission on Elections to place its copy of the statements of election returns at the disposal of Congress.
No congressional reception of already-transmitted corrections (Sec. 166-C)
- Section 166-C prohibits any correction of errors allegedly committed in the returns already transmitted to the President of the Senate from being received and given due course by Congress.