G.R. No. L-26883 November 23, 1967
PORFERIO INGUITO, petitioner, vs. THE COURT OF APPEALS and ALFREDO ORQUILLAS, SR., respondents.

FACTS

Porferio Inguito and Alfredo Orquillas, Sr. were candidates for mayor of Enrique Villanueva, Siquijor, in the November 12, 1963 elections. The municipal board of canvassers proclaimed Inguito elected by a margin of one vote (645 to 644). Orquillas filed an election protest in the Court of First Instance, which later decided in favor of Orquillas, finding he won by one vote (647 to 646). Inguito appealed to the Court of Appeals, which affirmed the lower court’s decision and further found Orquillas won by four votes (647 to 643). Inguito appealed to the Supreme Court, seeking the rejection of thirteen ballots cast in Precinct No. 5, all counted for Orquillas, on the ground that they are marked ballots. Each of these thirteen ballots contains the feature of a candidate’s surname being written twice.

ISSUE

Whether the thirteen ballots, each containing a candidate’s surname written twice, are marked ballots that should be invalidated.

RULING

Yes, the thirteen ballots are marked and should be invalidated. The Supreme Court ruled that while a single repetition of a candidate’s name, in the absence of evidence showing a purpose to identify the ballot, does not generally invalidate it, the circumstances in this case show a pattern designed to mark the ballots. All thirteen ballots were cast in the same precinct and contained the common feature of a surname repetition, occurring on the same line, which cannot be deemed unintentional or due to oversight. This evidences a pattern to mark the ballots. Excluding these thirteen ballots from Orquillas’s count (647 minus 13) gives him 634 votes. Inguito, with 643 votes as counted by the Court of Appeals, thus wins by a margin of nine votes. The Supreme Court reversed the decision of the Court of Appeals and declared protestee-appellant Porferio Inguito the winner.