Philippines Senate impeachment court seeks Supreme Court ruling on conviction threshold

The Philippine Senate impeachment court has requested the Supreme Court to quickly resolve legal challenges regarding the required vote threshold for the conviction of Vice President Sara Duterte. A recent ruling by the Senate, passed in a 13-1 vote, interprets the constitutional two-thirds requirement based on the number of senator-judges actually participating in the trial rather than the total membership.

With 20 senator-judges currently participating, the threshold for conviction has shifted from 16 votes to 14. Court spokesperson Reginald Tongol stated that the tribunal seeks a swift resolution to prevent the verdict from being left in limbo. Senate President Sherwin Gatchalian indicated that a revised trial calendar could allow for a final vote by December.

Two petitions are currently before the Supreme Court. One, filed by former Executive Secretary Victor Rodriguez, argues the ruling unlawfully rewrites the 1987 Constitution. Another, filed by lawyer Ernesto Francisco Jr., seeks a status quo ante order to halt the implementation of the new rule. The controversy follows a vote where 13 senators overturned an earlier ruling by presiding officer Francis Escudero, which had maintained the 16-vote requirement.