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The Commission on Elections (Comelec) has disqualified Senator Grace Poe from the 2016 presidential race for not meeting the residency requirement of the Constitution for presidential candidates.
Comelec second division voted 3-0 in favor of the petition filed by lawyer Estrella Elamparo, who is seeking the cancellation of Poe’s certificate of candidacy for president.
Poe’s running mate, Sen. Francis Escudero, confirmed that she was disqualified by the Comelec second division, saying he received the information 10 minutes ago, but did not provide additional details.
According to Elamparo, Poe failed to meet the 10-year residency requirement mandated by the Constitution for a presidential candidate.
The Comelec division said Poe became a resident only on July 2006 when she applied for dual citizenship. It said this would make her two months short of meeting the 10-year residency rule.
Meanwhile, Poe’s lawyers insisted that she became a resident in May 2005.
Poe’s camp said they will appeal the decision with the Comelec en banc.
Elamparo’s petition was just one of the four petitions seeking to disqualify Poe from the presidential race. —Amita O. Legaspi/KBK, GMA News
FROM: GMA NEWS
