Abra mayoral bet DQed on residency question

BAGUIO CITY (January 27, 2025)— The First Division of the Commission on Elections (COMELEC) has cancelled the Certificate of Candidacy (CoC) of Tayum, Abra mayoral bet Kathlia Elite Alcantara Quizon because she lacked the required time to have lived where she is seeking for the town’s top post.



In Comelec resolution dated January 23, 2025, Quizon failed in proving her required residency Tayum prior to her filing of CoC for the National and Local Elections (NLE) 2025, thus prompting the poll body to grant the petition by Tayum villager Jomar Castillo on the ground that Quizon committed a material misrepresentation when she falsely stated her period of residency in the said town as "43 years and four months" up to the day before the election.

“Petitioner averred that contrary to respondent’s statement in her CoC, the latter has not been a resident of Tayum since she left for Manila and stayed to maintain her domicile therein," stated in the COMELEC resolution. 

Castillo highlighted in his petition that Quizon was registered as a voter only in March 20, 2024. 

On August 21 of 2024, Castillo filed a Petition for Exclusion from the list of permanent voters against Quizon in which the 2nd Municipal Circuit Trial Court (MCTC) Tayum-Peñarrubia, Abra granted it on September 4 , 2024. Quizon filed on September 10 an appeal before the Regional Trial Court (RTC) Branch 58, Bucay, Abra where said court reversed the MCTC's decision on October 1, 2024 thereby reinstating her name in the permanent list of voters of Tayum.

On October 13, 2024, Castillo filed a petition before the First Division of the COMELEC to "Deny Due Course to or Cancellation" of Quizon's CoC. Quizon in her argument denied the allegations of material misrepresentation insisting that Tayum is her domicile of origin and she did not lost it nor she had intention to abandon it. She also argued that the period of her residency does my affect her eligibility claiming she had complied with the minimum requirement of law being a resident of Tayum for at least one year. 

The COMELEC agreed with Castillo that Quizon lost her domicile when she decided to move in Manila and maintain her domicile therein. Castillo in his petition also stated that Quizon does not own any business or property in the municipality which was proven by a certifications issued on July 2024 by the municipal treasurer of Tayum attesting to the absence of a business establishment was registered under the name of Quizon and there was no real property registered under the same.

Meanwhile, the petition to disqualify Pidigan Mayoral bet Artemio Donato Jr. was dismissed by the First Division of COMELEC. It said it did not find Donato Jr. committing material representation when he filed his CoC.