Day: May 12, 2025

Manila: The Commission on Elections (Comelec) announced on Monday that the introduction of new innovations in the May 12 midterm elections significantly benefitted voters. In a press briefing, Comelec Chairperson George Garcia highlighted the reliance on early voting and mall voting features by the electorate during the polls. According to Philippines News Agency, Garcia noted, “Many voters have benefited from innovations implemented in this election such as early voting and mall voting.” The early voting feature particularly assisted vulnerable sectors, including senior citizens, persons with disabilities, and pregnant women, allowing them to cast their votes as early as 5 a.m.

Manila: The Commission on Elections (Comelec) has clarified that it has never issued a running total of votes, addressing concerns raised about the transparency of election results. According to Philippines News Agency, Comelec spokesperson John Rex Laudiangco stated that while data for partial tallies may originate from Comelec, the tallies themselves are not released by the commission. He emphasized that the commission has not provided any unofficial tally or aggregate or running total outside of canvassing, as the law permits Comelec to aggregate only after the official canvass. Laudiangco noted that the poll body releases the unofficial results per precinct

Manila: The Parish Pastoral Council for Responsible Voting (PPCRV) on Monday recommended restoring the original sensitivity threshold of automated counting machines (ACMs) to 25 percent. The organization expressed concerns that the current 15-percent setting may be too sensitive, potentially leading to ballot-reading issues. According to Philippines News Agency, PPCRV spokesperson Ana Singson highlighted in a press briefing that the threshold might have been lowered excessively this year. Singson suggested reverting to the 25 percent sensitivity level used in 2022, a setting believed to be more effective in reducing errors. Complaints received by PPCRV indicated that certain parts of ballots were

Manila: The Commission on Elections (Comelec) has confirmed that there were no irregularities in the reported delay concerning the transmission of election data to the Parish Pastoral Council for Responsible Voting’s (PPCRV) transparency server, which occurred an hour after the polls closed at 7 p.m. on Monday. According to Philippines News Agency, the PPCRV reported that by 8:15 p.m., it was unable to access the election results data received by its transparency server. This situation was deemed “unusual” and unprecedented since 2010, prompting the PPCRV to post a statement on its Facebook page. The post quickly gained traction, leading social