Substitute candidates for next year's elections may file their certificates of candidacy (CoCs) up to December 14, 2009, Commission on Elections (Comelec) officials said in a resolution.

Section 13 of Comelec Resolution No. 8678 allows the filing of substitute candidates for registered political parties not later than December 14. This applies to candidates who may need to be substituted due to death, disqualification, or withdrawal.

But substitutes of candidates who died or have become disabled may file their CoCs even up to mid-day of May 10, 2010.

“The substitute for a candidate who died or suffered permanent incapacity or disqualified by final judgment, may file his certificate of candidacy up to mid-day of election day. If the death or permanent disability should occur between the day before the election and mid-day of election day, the substitute candidate may file the certificate with any board of election inspectors in the political subdivision where he is a candidate or in the case of a candidate for President, Vice President or Senator, with the Law Department of the Comelec in Manila,” the resolution read.

Comelec officials are also expected to file a proposal to Congress to ease the voting process for substitute candidates in next year's elections.

Jose Tolentino, Comelec executive director, said the proposal will allow the vote for an official candidate to be recognized as vote for his or her substitute.

This is important as Section 12 of RA 9006 provides that after official ballots have been printed, the votes cast for substituted candidates will be taken as stray votes. But the official ballots have spaces where voters can write the name of the substitute candidates.

“Kapag wala talagang lumabas na batas diyan (If there is no new law), we will design the ballots in such a way that we will comply with RA 9006 which says that there should be a line or a blank space for the voter to write down the name of the substitute which doesn't make sense because the machine cannot recognize handwriting,” Tolentino said.

Tolentino said they will make ballots that provide blank spaces that will correspond to substitute candidates.