The Commission on Elections (Comelec) en banc on Friday, Aug. 29, affirmed the Commission Second Division's ruling granting the petition to cancel registration of the Duterte Youth Party-list.

In a 12-page resolution, the Commission en banc denied the party-list's Motion for Reconsideration (MR) for lack of merit. In its MR, the party-list prayed for the reversal of the Second Division's ruling and the proclamation as one of the winning party-list groups in the May 2025 polls.

To recall, the Second Division, voting 2-1, granted the petition seeking to cancel the registration of the Duterte Youth Party-list, which ranked second in the recent midterm elections.

Petitioners Reeya Beatrice Magtalas, Abigal Aleli tan, Raainah Punzalan, and Aunell Ross Angco prayed for the cancellation of the registration of Duterte Youth. They argued that Duterte Youth failed to comply with the requirements of publication and hearing, which are both jurisdictional in character. Aside from this, they also claimed that the Duterte Youth had committed grounds for the cancellation of its registration.

According to the Commission en banc, it finds no "cogent reason" to depart from or reverse the ruling of the Commission Second Division.

"It is evident that the Motion failed to raise any valid or substantial ground to warrant a reconsideration of the Assailed Resolution. The Assailed Resolution is well supported by the evidence on record and is consistent with applicable law," it said.

"The Commission (En Banc) resolved, as it hereby resolves to deny the Motion for Reconsideration. The Assailed Resolution is hereby affirmed," it added.

In its ruling, the Second Division said that having no prescriptive period in the cancellation of registration allows the Commission to monitor and enforce the ongoing compliance of each organization. It added that this prevents the misuse and abuse of the very system which allowed only those qualified and genuine sectors to benefit from the party-list representation.

When it comes to the requirements, the Second Division said that groups, organizations or even coalitions seeking public office and representation bear the burden of knowing and adhering to the laws that govern them.

"Thus, when Duterte Youth applied for registration, it behooves the party-list to know the statutory conditions, most particularly, the jurisdictional and constitutional requirements," it said.

"In as much as Duterte Youth failed to prove compliance with the jurisdictional requirements of publication and hearing, its registration as a party-list is void," it added.