The Commission on Elections (Comelec) on Tuesday reminded aspirants vying for national and local positions to register their social media accounts for the 2025 midterm elections.

In an ambush interview, Comelec Chairperson George Garcia issued a stern warning to election aspirants that they could be disqualified if they fail to register their social media accounts.

“Huwag po tayong makipagmatigasan. At sana, huwag niyo pong susubukan ang Comelec sapagkat pwede kaming mag-disqualify sa inyo (Don’t be hard headed. And don’t try us, because we, in the Comelec, can disqualify you),” Garcia said.

Garcia noted that violators could face an election offense with one to six years or imprisonment.

“Kasi ang purpose ng patakaran eh para siguraduhing pantay-pantay ang lahat. Kahit ikaw ay mayaman o mahirap ay may opportunity para makapangampanya (Because the purpose of a rule is to assure that everyone is equal. Whether you’re rich or poor, everybody has an opportunity to campaign),” he added.

Garcia said that only 62 out of 44,000 aspirants and 156 party-list groups have so far registered as of 21 October.

Latest data from the Comelec showed the 62 election hopefuls submitted hard copies for registration.

At least 179 local bets, three senatorial aspirants, and four party-list groups, meanwhile, submitted online registration forms.

On Monday, social media platforms pledged their support to the Comelec to combat misinformation and disinformation ahead of the May 2025 national and local elections and the Bangsamoro parliamentary polls.

Representatives of Meta, Google, and TikTok signed a pledge of support in the presence of Garcia and Commissioner Nelson Celis, who is commissioner in charge of the Comelec’s Task Force Katotohanan, Katapatan, at Katarungan sa Halaan (TFK3H).

“Nag-commit sila na basta nag-request tayo na ipa-takedown lalo na ang mga malicious, misinformation, disinformation, fake news—agad nila itong aaksyunan (They committed that if we request a takedown, especially on malicious, misinformation, disinformation, fake news—they will immediately take action),” Garcia said in a radio interview.

“Kailangan magparehistro ang mga kandidato, ang mga political party, campaign staff ng kanilang social media accounts. Kapag yan ay nagpo-promote ng candidacy ng isang tao—pwedeng maging dahilan yan para ma-takedown ang post nila (A candidate, political party, and the campaign staff of their social media accounts have to register. If they promote the candidacy of one person—it can serve as a reason for a take down),” he reiterated.

Garcia said the poll body will not control the content that candidates post, but will monitor their expenses using social media.

The Comelec chief said the National Bureau of Investigation and Philippine National Police will also coordinate with them to take action against troll accounts.