DAVAO CITY, Philippines — Vice President Sara Duterte expressed her disagreement on Friday, September 25, over the decision to delay the Barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan Elections (BSKE), maintaining that the local polls should have gone ahead as scheduled.
However, Duterte acknowledged during an interview that the executive branch and electoral body must abide by the enacted legislation moving the vote.
“Dapat hindi siya pinostponed pero syempre kung ano yung nasa batas yun yung masusunod,” Duterte said.
“So, kung merong postponement at yun ang masusunod at yan ang susundin ng Commission on Elections,” Duterte added.
Her statements coincided with President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s signing of Republic Act No. 12326, which formally rescheduled the November 2026 local elections to the second Monday of November 2028.
Under the newly enacted law, future village and youth council elections will take place every five years, effectively extending the tenure of incumbent local officials until their successors are chosen.
Following the enactment, the Commission on Elections (COMELEC) halted all election-related preparations, including the filing of certificates of candidacy that was set to begin on September 28.