The Supreme Court effectively reinstated Susan Yap-Sulit as the Mayor of Tarlac City with a status quo ante order (SQAO) regarding her disqualification as a candidate on Tuesday, November 4.

“The SC issued a status quo ante order to maintain the situation between the parties prior to the issuance of the COMELEC (Commission on Elections) En Banc Resolution, while the case is pending,” the court said in a statement.

Yap-Sulit won as Tarlac mayor during the May 12, 2025 elections and was proclaimed by the COMELEC.

Amado S. De Leon and Jay-Ar Capulong Navarro filed a petition to disqualify Yap-Sulit, however, alleging she had not been a resident of Tarlac City for even a year before the elections took place.

Although the COMELEC Second Division dismissed their petition, the COMELEC, this time as a full commission, reversed its prior decision and disqualified Yap-Sulit on October 22.

She then brought the decision before the High Court and petitioned for a temporary restraining order or a SQAO to challenge her disqualification.

The court granted her plea; in addition, it has ordered complainants De Leon and Navarro to submit their comments on Yap-Sulit’s petition within a non-extendible period of 10 days from the release of the notice.