Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) Secretary Jonvic Remulla said on Monday the government is monitoring 37 areas as possible hotspots in the 2025 elections, 28 of them in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM).

In a radio interview, Remulla said that, aside from the BARMM, other hotspots are in Leyte and Central Luzon.

“We have 37 hotspots — 28 in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao, and there are hotspots in the 3rd and 4th districts of Leyte, as well as in Central Luzon,” Remulla said.

He, however, dismissed the possibility of a violent “mid-term” election next year.

“There will be fewer incidents compared to before. But generally, we don’t expect violent polls,” Remulla said.

Meanwhile, an election officer in Nunungan, Lanao del Norte, was ambushed and killed last week. Before that, incidents of violence against elected and aspiring local officials had been reported across the country.

One of the latest incidents occurred in Tantangan, South Cotabato, where a former barangay chairman who had filed his candidacy for vice mayor in the 2025 midterm elections was shot dead on 18 November.