G.R. No. 18844 ; April 6, 1922
HILARION ALQUISOLA, petitioner, vs. MUNICIPAL COUNCIL OF BARILI, Province of Cebu, ET AL., respondents.

FACTS

The municipal council of Barili, Cebu, appointed three election inspectors and three substitutes for each precinct, all proposed by the local Nacionalista Party committee. This was done on March 8, 1922, one day before the new Election Law ( Act No. 3030 ) was approved. The president of the local Democrata Party requested the council to appoint inspectors representing his party but was refused. The Democrata Party then filed an original action for mandamus to compel the municipal council to convene and appoint two inspectors and substitutes for the majority party and one for the minority party as per its request. The municipal council demurred, arguing that the Democrata Party was not organized in the municipality during the last elections and that its action was taken under the old election law.

ISSUE

Whether the municipal council of Barili violated the law by appointing all election inspectors from the Nacionalista Party, thereby denying representation to the Democrata Party, the minority party that participated in the previous election.

RULING

Yes. The municipal council’s action was in violation of the law. Under both the old and new election laws (specifically Act No. 3030 , amending the Administrative Code), the intent is to ensure representation of the two principal contending political parties on the election board to safeguard electoral purity. The law mandates that in a municipality with competing political parties, two inspectors and two substitutes shall belong to the party that polled the largest number of votes in the preceding election, and one inspector and one substitute shall belong to the party that polled the next largest number of votes. The facts show that in the 1919 election in Barili, the Nacionalista Party (majority) and the Democrata Party (minority) contested, with the Democrata Party receiving a varying number of votes and having a formal local organization. Therefore, the Nacionalista Party is entitled to two inspectors and two substitutes per precinct, and the Democrata Party is entitled to one inspector and one substitute per precinct. The demurrer is overruled. The writ of mandamus is granted, ordering the municipal council to convene immediately and make the appointments accordingly.