Manila: The Supreme Court (SC) has issued a directive to the executive and legislative branches of the Philippine government to provide their comments on a petition challenging the legality of the law postponing the Barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan Elections (BSKE) to November 2026.

According to Philippines News Agency, SC spokesperson Camille Ting announced that the high court en banc has requested responses from the Senate, House of Representatives, Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin, and the Commission on Elections (Comelec). These entities have been given a strict, non-extendible deadline of 10 days from the receipt of the notice to submit their comments.

The petition was filed by election lawyer Romulo Macalintal, who is contesting the constitutionality of Republic Act (RA) 12232. This law, signed by President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. on August 13, postpones the BSKE initially set for December 1, 2025, and establishes the term of office for village and SK (youth) officials at four years.

In his legal challenge, Macalintal referenced a 2023 Supreme Court ruling which mandates that any postponement of the BSKE must be supported by "sufficiently important, substantial or compelling reasons to safeguard the right of suffrage." He argues that RA 12232 lacks such compelling reasons for the postponement, calling into question the law's validity.