Comelec to proclaim ML Party-list despite CA decision

The Commission on Elections (Comelec) said Friday it has no reason to withhold the proclamation of ML Party-list and its first nominee former senator Leila de Lima despite a Court of Appeals decision nullifying her acquittal in one drug case.

Comelec chairperson George Erwin Garcia told reporters that there is no basis to issue an order suspending any proclamation since there are no pending cases against the party-list before Comelec.

On Thursday, the CA released a 12-page decision granting the petition for certiorari filed by the Office of the Solicitor General (OSG) and remanded the case back to Branch 204 of the Muntinlupa RTC.

De Lima said she would appeal the CA decision up to the Supreme Court if necessary, noting that it is subject to motion for reconsideration.

Comelec maintains that suspending the proclamation of a winning party-list or nominee based on an undecided case is inappropriate and will have no effect on their certification.

Based on the national certificate of canvass from the 2025 midterm elections, ML Party-list secured a seat in the House of Representatives as the fourteenth-place winner with 547,949 votes.