Party-list allocation – 2007
Under the Abalos commission, the Panganiban formula was applied. It stemed from Case VFP v. COMELEC where the formula gives three seats to the party with the highest number of votes. Party-list candidates BANAT and Bayan Muna filed separate complaints on the proper allocation of seats in the party-list system. On April 23, 2009, the Supreme Court declared the two percent threshold clause of Republic Act No. 7941, otherwise known as the Party-List System Act and the Panganiban formula unconstitutional.
Before the elections, there are 220 district representatives up for election. There are 16,024,795 votes cast for party list. With the SC decision, that makes 55 seats reserved for sectoral representatives. It increased the membership by 33 seats.
The disqualification of the party-list group Filipinos for Peace, Justice and Progress Movement (FPJPM) in July 2008 has lowered the votes cast in the party-list race from 16,024,795 to 15,723,764. Votes for FPJPM have been deducted from the total votes cast.
Based on the SC ruling, FPJPM was entitled to one seat, ranking 19th among the party-list groups. FPJPM got 301,031 votes. But the Comelec cancelled its registration on the ground that the group does not actually represent the marginalized sector. The SC has upheld the Comelec decision.
COMELEC however declared that there are only 219 district representatives (with the Supreme Court decision of the election of the congressional seat of Shariff Kabunsuan void and the restoration of the first district of Maguindanao), reducing seats to 54.
The updated computation only affected the ranking of some of the winning party-list groups. But the reduction in the number of legislative districts proved to be fatal for the party-list Cocofed (Philippine Coconut Producers Federation Inc.)
Under the SC ruling, Cocofed was entitled to one seat. But Comelec ruled that “although Cocofed was included in the decision of the SC entitled to the last 55th seat, the number of available party-list distribution, which has now been reduced to 54, could no longer accommodate Cocofed.”