SC upholds electionof disqualified Tarlac mayor

MANILA, Philippines — Disqualified Tarlac City mayor Susan Yap-Sulit will be able to reclaim her post after the Supreme Court (SC) upheld her proclamation as the winner in the mayoralty race during the 2025 midterm elections.

The SC granted a petition filed by Yap-Sulit, questioning her disqualification by the Commission on Elections (Comelec) due to alleged lack of residency.

The high court declared Yap-Sulit eligible to be elected mayor of Tarlac City and her proclamation legal.

In a 17-page decision promulgated on June 3 and uploaded on the SC website yesterday, the high tribunal said the Comelec committed abuse of discretion when it canceled the certificate of candidacy (COC) of Yap-Sulit on the grounds that she failed to establish residence in the city.

Two complainants including a barangay chairman claimed that Yap-Sulit had not been living in the address she stated in her COC.

The complainants said a warehouse stands in the address and that Yap-Sulit could not be found in the property every time barangay health workers visited the area.

However, the SC said there is no law requiring Yap-Sulit to be in her registered address all the time.

The high tribunal said the absence of Yap-Sulit from the address could not be considered as proof that she is not a resident of the barangay.

Aside from noting the argument of the petitioner that she transferred to Tarlac City from San Jose town in 2013, the SC said her being a former governor of Tarlac from 2016 to 2025 is proof that she is not a stranger or newcomer who does not know the condition and needs of the community.