Comelec 'proactive' ahead 2025 polls, cracks down on violations

The Commission on Elections (Comelec) is taking a more proactive approach ahead of the 2025 midterm elections, Chairman George Erwin Garcia said on Sunday, emphasizing that even violations on social media are being addressed swiftly.

"Right now, the Comelec is proactive... Even when we see possible violations of some candidates just on social media, we immediately take action," Garcia said in Filipino in a radio interview with dzBB.

He added that the poll body has been issuing show cause orders against candidates suspected of committing election offenses such as vote buying, abuse of state resources, and the use of offensive language during the campaign period.

“A show cause order does not immediately mean that a candidate is guilty. It simply gives the concerned individual the chance to explain themselves. If we are not satisfied with their explanation, we will file a disqualification case and election offense charges against them,” he said.

The Comelec chairman also revealed that in the coming week, the task force against election violations is expected to file several formal disqualification cases.

Meanwhile, Garcia assured the public that preparations for #Halalan2025 are well underway. The deployment of election equipment has started, teachers and Philippine National Police (PNP) personnel have been trained, and ballots are currently being distributed — a process expected to be completed before the end of the month.

Overseas voting is ongoing, Garcia said, with the Comelec closely monitoring the process.

As part of their vigilance, the Comelec is also closely watching for election-related violence, especially in areas where tensions and incidents are starting to rise.

Regarding government aid distributions, Garcia reiterated that while the national and local governments are exempted from the election ban on aid distribution until 1 May, the presence of politicians during these activities is strictly prohibited. Starting 2 May until 12 May, all forms of aid distribution will be absolutely banned.

On cybersecurity

Garcia also assured voters that the election system remains secure, especially against alleged foreign interference. He cited previous attempts to hack the Comelec systems, including the 35 million hack attempts against the Precinct Finder in 2022, all of which were unsuccessful.

However, Garcia warned about the dangers of "mind conditioning," where unfounded accusations of election fraud are already being circulated. 

"What we fear is mind conditioning, where even now they are saying 'the election has already been rigged by Comelec," he said.

The poll chief reaffirmed the commission's commitment to safeguard the integrity of the electoral process and vowed that pending disqualification cases could prevent winning candidates from being proclaimed if necessary.