Impeachment Court to vote on 2/3 denominator after Cayetano challenge rejected

September 23, 2026

By ABOGADO.COM.PH Staff

The Impeachment Court will proceed to resolve the issue of the denominator for the two-thirds requirement to convict in an impeachment trial, after the objection of Sen. Alan Peter Cayetano was rejected by a majority vote of members present.

Cayetano raised a point of order questioning the power of the Impeachment Court to raise the issue about the interpretation of the two-thirds vote requirement to convict at this time.

Presiding Officer Sen. Francis Escudero denied Cayetano’s point of order, saying his earlier ruling that 16 votes are required to convict is also an interpretation of the constitutional provision requiring a two-thirds vote of the Senate.

“That authority cannot be recognized when it supports one interpretation and then denied when the same provision is on appeal. The question may concern the correctness of the interpretation, but not, to my mind, the court’s authority to make it,” Escudero said.

Cayetano appealed the ruling, and it was denied through a 13-6-1 vote of the members present.

The Impeachment Court last week heard the views of retired Supreme Court justices on whether the two-thirds vote should be based on all 24 members of the Senate or only on those who participated in the impeachment trial.

The prosecution and defense presented their arguments on Tuesday.