THE Supreme Court has stopped the parliamentary elections in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) scheduled on October 13, 2025 after it declared unconstitutional the Bangsamoro Autonomy Act (BAA) No. 77 or the Bangsamoro Parliamentary Redistricting Act of 2025, and BAA No. 58 or the Bangsamoro Parliamentary Act Districts Act of 2024.
The decision was reached during the Court’s regular en banc session on Tuesday, where 11 justices concurred with ponencia while three justices concurred in the declaration of the nullity of BAA 77, but dissented with the finding that BAA 58 is invalid.
The three-acting Chief Justice Marvic Leonen and Associate Justices Ricardo Rosario and Antonio Co-were of the opinion that there was sufficient legal basis for the election to continue.
‘There can be no parliamentary elections on October 13, 2025 because of the lack of a valid districting law,’ SC Spokesman Camille Sue Mae Ting said at a press briefing.
Instead, the Court directed the Commission on Elections to continue with its preparations and conduct of the parliamentary elections not later than March 31, 2026 and in compliance with Section 5 of the Voter’s Registration Act which provides for the establishments of precincts.
It also ordered the Bangsamoro Transition Authority (BTA) to immediately undertake, not later than October 30, 2025, the determination of parliamentary districts for the first regular election of the members of parliament in compliance with the provisions of the Bangsamoro Organic Law (BOL).
The Court said BAA 77, signed into law on August 28, 2025, is unconstitutional for violating Section 5 Section 5 of the Voter’s Registration Act, which prohibits any alteration of precincts once the election period has started.
It noted that BAA 77, which reorganizes parliamentary districts within the BARMM to reallocate seats originally intended for Sulu, was passed on August 19, 2025 or five days after the election period began on August 14, 2025.
Likewise, the SC said BAA 77 is void for violating the BOL’s requirement that each district should comprise adjacent and adjoining areas as far as practicable.
It observed that some local government units in Lanao Del Sur, Maguindanao del Norte, and Cotabato City were assigned to different districts that were neither contiguous or adjacent.
However, the SC ruled that the nullification of BAA 77 does not revive its predecessor law, BAA 58, which still includes Sulu in its parliamentary districts.
‘Since BAA 58 is based on an outdated framework following the removal of Sulu from BARMM, it cannot be reinstated. Rather, a new and valid districting law must be passed consistent with the Bangsamoro Organic Law, national laws, and the Constitution,’ the Court said.
In ordering the conduct of elections on October 13, 2025, the Court took into consideration practical concerns such as several trainings for the poll workers, which usually takes weeks and the deployment and installation of Starlink which takes at least two weeks.
‘More importantly, enforcing BAA 77 with less than a month before the BPE would cause massive confusion among the more than 2.25 million registered voters across BARMM’s 105 municipalities and three cities, as the redistricting will heavily impact precinct assignments.,’ the SC said.
Comelec back to zero
Comelec on Thursday said preparations for the Bangsamoro parliamentary polls are now back to zero following the Supreme Court’s decision.
Comelec Chairman George Erwin M. Garcia said the ruling left the poll body without a law to implement for the October 13 elections.
‘There is no piecemeal conduct of election.Now, it is very clear that we have no law to enforce. [It’s] back to zero for Comelec,’ Garcia told reporters in a text message.
He stressed that the poll body cannot move forward until a new legal framework is in place.
‘But in the meantime, the ball is in the hands of the Bangsamoro Parliament. We shall be waiting for their action and compliance,’ Garcia said.
Earlier, the Comelec said proceeding with the October polls would be ‘legally and factually impossible’ given the legal uncertainty.
The poll body has yet to disclose how much has been wasted from its initial preparations for the elections, which will no longer push through.
However, it noted that if the Supreme Court later upholds BAA 77, the Comelec would need at least P774 million in additional funds since preparations would have to restart from scratch, including reconfiguring the automated election system to reflect the new seat distribution.
If the polls are reset but conducted under the earlier BAA 58, the additional cost would be lower, at around P50 million.
Consolidated petitions
The Court’s ruling stemmed from the consolidated petitions filed by BTA parliament member Lanang T. Ali Jr., et al (G.R. No. E-02219) and BTA parliament member Abdullah Macapaar at al. (G.R. No. E-002235).
Ali et al filed a petition for certiorari and prohibition with prayer for TRO challenging BAA 77 for allegedly violating the Voter’s Registration Act by altering precincts during the election period, among others.
Macapaar et al filed a petition for certiorari and prohibition and for the issuance of a status quo ante order, arguing BAA 77 is unconstitutional for violating the provisions on ensuring free, orderly, honest, peaceful, and credible elections during election period, among others.
On September 16, the Court issued a TRO enjoining the Comelec and the BTA from implementing BAA 77.
BAA No. 77 reorganizes parliamentary districts within the BARMM to reallocate the seven parliamentary seats initially assigned to the province of Sulu following the 2024 SC decision excluding the Province of Sulu from BARMM after the province rejected the law’s ratification.
The 2024 decision declared unconstitutional the interpretation of the provision in the law directing the provinces and cities of BARMM to vote as one geographical unit including provinces that did not vote to be included.
The said provision, according to the SC, violates Article X, Section 18 of the Constitution, which states that only provinces, cities, and geographic areas voting favorably in the plebiscite shall be included in the autonomous region.
Amnesty not affected
Meanwhile, the Supreme Court decision to postpone the BARMM parliamentary elections will have no impact on the ongoing process of providing amnesty to former members of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) and the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF), according to the National Amnesty Commission (NAC).
In a press briefing in Malacañang on Wednesday, NAC chairperson Leah Tanodra-Armamento said the amnesty initiative is separate from the BARMM polls.
‘There will be no effect since the amnesty is a different process. As far as the BARMM is concerned, this [amnesty process] is part of our peace agreement with them,’ she explained in Filipino.
‘So the election is different. That is a political matter that the BARMM will deal with. This is for our government,’ she added.