Chinese government interference During a hearing of the
Senate's special panel on maritime and admiralty zones in April 2025, the
National Security Council said that there are indicators that the
Chinese government is
interfering in the upcoming 2025 national elections including discrediting candidates critical of it and supporting candidates who sympathize with China. The
National Intelligence Coordinating Agency (NICA) also claims that Chinese agents are "amplifying divisive political discourse" in the Philippines in coordination with local proxies. NICA alleged that the Chinese embassy in Manila have paid
Makati-based firm InfinitUs Marketing Solutions in 2023 for a
troll farm on
Facebook and
X to spread
disinformation and promote Chinese state interests. In April 2025, the
National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) arrested a Chinese national operating an
IMSI-catcher near the offices of the
Commission on Elections.
Security concerns On October 21, 2023, Senator
Francis Tolentino urged COMELEC to formulate policies regulating
artificial intelligence (AI) in campaign materials to uphold the "principle of truthfulness". Later, on May 29, 2024, Garcia wrote to the COMELEC
en banc seeking to prohibit the use of
deepfakes and AI in campaigning for the 2025 election following the circulation of a deepfake of President Marcos appearing to have ordered an attack on China amid tensions in the
South China Sea. Garcia's proposal was backed by Senators
Bong Revilla and
Win Gatchalian, though the latter called for the commission to specify the policies on AI as soon as possible, remarking that "AI is evolving every day". On January 9, 2025, COMELEC declared 38 cities and municipalities nationwide as election hotspots under its highest red-level category due to grave peace and order situation in relation to the election. Orange-level alerts were issued for 177 areas while the lowest level, yellow, was assigned to 188 locations. On March 19, COMELEC revised its list of election hotspots, with the number of "red" and "orange" locations reduced to 36 and 156 respectively. In April 2025, more than 400 soldiers were redeployed from the
Zamboanga Peninsula to
Lanao del Sur to enhance security in the province following incidents of violence. In total, the
Philippine Army deployed 16,489 personnel nationwide to provide security during the election. In Lanao del Sur and
Basilan, 888 police officers were deputized as members of local Special Election Boards. COMELEC also approved the holding of vote canvassing in
Maguindanao del Sur to be held at the headquarters of the Philippine Army's Sixth Infantry Division in
Datu Odin Sinsuat,
Maguindanao del Norte. On polling day, 163,000 police officers were deployed to watch over polling stations, including 8,000 soldiers deployed in the
Visayas. On May 14, a man who offered on
Facebook on anyone who would bomb COMELEC offices was arrested in
Mandaue.
Premature campaigning Although premature campaigning is prohibited by the Omnibus Election Code, there is effectively no legal prohibition against the practice due to the landmark
Supreme Court decision
Penera v. COMELEC in 2009, which ruled that persons who filed certificates of candidacy could only be considered official candidates when the campaign period begins, and thus can only be penalized for election offenses they committed afterwards. In May 2024, the
Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism (PCIJ) published research indicating at least 14 potential Senatorial candidates collectively spent a total of ₱3.5 million to boost their posts on Facebook. The PCIJ indicated that Senator
Bong Go spent alone on Facebook advertising, being followed by former Senator
Bam Aquino and Secretary
Benjamin Abalos Jr. As such spending is not subject to electoral policy limiting campaign expenditures, Garcia moved to begin the ban on premature campaigning in October 2024, when candidates are due to file their candidacies for public office.
Red-tagging In February 2025, the COMELEC issued Resolution No. 11116, which made red-tagging and discrimination during election campaigns offenses punishable with imprisonment of one to six years and disqualification from public office. COMELEC Chair George Garcia said that the policy is based on the Supreme Court ruling that defined red-tagging as an act that threatens individuals. In March 2025,
Bayan Muna party-list nominee
Neri Colmenares filed a complaint urging COMELEC to investigate allegations of red-tagging and vilification constituting "massive and widespread black propaganda" and the destruction of campaign materials. The International Coalition for Human Rights in the Philippines stated that red-tagging was the most common election violation as of April 30, 2025, making up 78.7% of the election violations it had recorded. "This level of systematic red-tagging is not only a violation of human rights, it's a coordinated effort to intimidate and discredit democratic actors," the group said in a statement.
Election violence The
Philippine National Police officially recorded 100 election-related incidents since January 2025, with 20 deaths occurring as a result. The highest number of incidents were recorded in the
Cordillera Administrative Region, with 11 cases, and
Bangsamoro, with eight cases. As of May 11, 2025, COMELEC has also recorded more than 600 cases of vote-buying. On October 8, 2024, clashes between supporters of rival politicians on the last day of candidate registration in
Shariff Aguak,
Maguindanao del Sur left a
barangay watchman dead and six people injured, one of them critically. That same day, an attempt was made to steal a certificate of candidacy at a COMELEC office in
Himamaylan,
Negros Occidental. On October 19, a candidate for councilor in
Datu Hoffer Ampatuan, Maguindanao del Sur, was shot dead in an ambush by unidentified suspects that also injured his wife. On November 17, a candidate for vice mayor was shot dead in
Tantangan,
South Cotabato. On November 23, the assistant COMELEC officer for
Isulan,
Sultan Kudarat, was shot dead, followed on November 26 by the acting COMELEC officer for
Nunungan,
Lanao del Norte. On December 7, Ponciano Onia Jr., a reelectionist councilor of
Umingan,
Pangasinan, and concurrent national president of
Abono Partylist, was shot dead in an ambush. On December 19, a reelectionist councilor was shot dead in
Piñan, Zamboanga del Norte. On December 21, the provincial election supervisor of
Sulu survived an ambush that killed his brother in
Zamboanga City. On December 25, a petitioner who complained about the presence of
flying voters was shot dead in
Pualas,
Lanao del Sur. A subsequent judicial investigation found that 1,750 names on the town's voter rolls were fraudulent. On January 18, 2025, a candidate for councilor in
Northern Kabuntalan,
Maguindanao del Norte, was shot dead in
Midsayap,
Cotabato. On January 25, a reelectionist municipal councilor of
Caoayan, Ilocos Sur was shot dead in
Vigan. On February 4, Anwar Saluwang, the mayor of
Nabalawag in the
Special Geographic Area of Cotabato, was arrested in
Davao City for violating the nationwide gun ban imposed as part of the election. On February 11, a vice mayoral candidate of
Buluan, Maguindanao del Sur, survived an ambush on his vehicle. That same day, three people were arrested for trying to extort from two municipal candidates in
Enrile, Cagayan by claiming to be COMELEC-connected IT specialists who could rig the election results in their favor. On February 24, Omar Samama, the reelectionist vice mayor of
Datu Piang, Maguindanao del Sur, was shot and injured while speaking at an event. That same day, the convoy of a mayoral candidate of
Pidigan,
Abra, was ambushed in
Pilar, killing two people, including a
barangay chairman. On March 26, the COMELEC officer for
Datu Odin Sinsuat, Maguindanao del Norte, was killed in an ambush along with her husband, prompting COMELEC to place the municipality under its control on April 4. On April 7, a candidate for municipal councilor in
Lagangilang, Abra, shot dead a barangay chairman during a dispute with a rival candidate before being shot dead himself by an unidentified individual. On April 10, Kerwin Espinosa, a mayoral candidate of
Albuera, Leyte, who had previously admitted to being a drug trafficker, was shot and injured along with his running-mate for vice mayor and a bystander while at a campaign rally. The next day, suspected explosive materials were discovered abandoned at his campaign headquarters. On April 13, Datu Omar Baba, a reelectionist candidate for the provincial board of Maguindanao del Sur was injured along with his driver in an ambush in
Datu Anggal Midtimbang. On April 15, the town of Buluan in Maguindanao del Sur, was placed under COMELEC control due to continuing violence, including an incident where grenades were thrown at the municipal hall. On April 21, a shootout between the convoys of a mayoral candidate in
Tayum, Abra, and a
barangay kagawad left one person dead and another injured. On April 23, Joel Ruma, the reelectionist mayor of
Rizal, Cagayan, was shot dead by a suspected sniper while campaigning, with three people injured in the same incident. On April 26, a candidate for councilor in
San Pablo, Isabela, was shot and injured along with two companions in an ambush. On April 28, Leninsky Bacud, a nominee of Ang Bumbero ng Pilipinas party-list, was shot dead in an ambush in
Sampaloc,
Manila. On April 30, a campaign coordinator of a municipal candidate was killed in a shooting in
Badian, Cebu. On May 4, a grenade attack was carried out on the residence in Buluan of Maguindanao del Sur vice gubernatorial candidate Hisham Nando, who was campaigning elsewhere at the time. On May 5, three people were arrested for impersonating COMELEC personnel and attempting to gain access to voting machines at a school in
Santa Cruz, Laguna. On May 7, the testing of voting machines at a polling station in
Alicia,
Zamboanga Sibugay was interrupted following a shootout between soldiers and unidentified gunmen that left one person dead. On May 8, police accused demonstrators of detonating an improvised smoke grenade during a protest against vote-buying at a government office in
Calamba, Laguna. On May 10, a
crowd crush at a reported payout for poll watchers in Zamboanga City left two people dead. A candidate for councilor and a student died in a clash in
Pandag, Maguindanao del Sur. On May 11, four people were killed in clashes between supporters of rival mayoral candidates in
Hadji Mohammad Ajul,
Basilan, while four others were injured in a shootout between supporters of rival political parties in
Cotabato City. Eleven people were arrested for trying to smuggle P441 million to the
Mactan–Cebu International Airport for vote buying. On polling day, clashes broke out in
Marawi between supporters of rival candidates, while a poll watcher poured water on a vote-counting machine. In
Silay, Negros Occidental, two supporters of reelectionist mayor Joedith Gallego were killed while five others were injured in a shooting near a campaign area. Two people were injured after gunmen opened fire near a polling station in
Bangued, Abra. One person was killed in clashes between rival political groups in
Dinas, Zamboanga del Sur. Voting was delayed in Datu Odin Sinsuat after voters protested against the local election boards and barricaded the municipal hall. Two people, a councilor candidate and his sibling, an incumbent barangay chairman were killed in
Bayang, Lanao del Sur. Three supporters of a mayoral candidate in
Hadji Muhtamad, Basilan, were killed in a shootout with police. Two poll watchers were removed in Abra after a video went viral of them shading ballots for senior citizens. More than 50 people queuing to vote were stung by bees from a hive that fell from a tree at a polling station in
Bacolod. On May 28, a newly elected councilor of
Datu Piang, Maguindanao del Sur was shot dead near his residence.
Complaints against candidates On February 28, COMELEC filed cybercrime charges against vice-mayoral candidate Jeryll Harold Respicio in
Reina Mercedes, Isabela, after he posted a video on social media appearing to demonstrate a method on how to tamper with the election results. After he won the election, Comelec suspended his proclamation until June 2. Several candidates were also summoned for remarks deemed inappropriate, including some considered misogynistic or prejudiced against ethnic groups. Among them were congressional candidate Ian Sia (
Pasig),
Batangas gubernatorial candidate Jay Ilagan, reelectionist
Misamis Oriental governor
Peter Unabia and House representative from
Davao de Oro Ruwel Peter Gonzaga. Sia was eventually disqualified by the COMELEC Second Division on May 7 over his remarks.
Campaign finance In September 2025, Chiz Escudero was ousted as Senate president after a
contractor for government flood-control projects testified that Escudero received a election campaign contribution of ₱30 million from a top contractor for government flood-control projects. Among the candidates for senator, the top spender during the campaign period was Camille Villar, who spent ₱179.6 million for her campaign. The other top spenders were Lito Lapid, who spent ₱163.58, and Pia Cayetano, who spent ₱62 million.
Vote buying In 2025, the European Union Election Observation Mission described vote buying in the Philippines as "endemic" and "well-entrenched." As of April 28, 2025, COMELEC has summoned 213 candidates on various complaints, mostly regarding vote-buying and abuse of state resources. The commission later summoned 74 individuals for alleged
vote-buying, including senatorial candidate
Camille Villar,
Marikina mayoral candidate
Stella Quimbo and husband congressional candidate
Miro Quimbo,
Manila mayoral candidates
Honey Lacuna,
Isko Moreno and
Sam Verzosa,
Laguna gubernatorial candidate
Danilo Fernandez,
Caloocan mayoral candidate
Along Malapitan, congressional candidates
Esmael Mangudadatu (
Maguindanao del Sur),
Maria Fe Abunda (
Eastern Samar), and several others, including non-candidates and party-lists.
Voting issues On May 12, volunteers from the
Parish Pastoral Council for Responsible Voting–Archdiocesan Citizen Engagement Committee were denied entry to vote in
Davao City. Senior citizens were frustrated at the waiting times to vote, some waiting up to an hour. NAMFREL said that most of the issues were related to the voting machines. According to NAMFREL, machines flagged properly filled ballots as invalid, ballots were rejected due to ink smudges, blocked screens prevented the machines from reading ballots, and machines rejected ballots because of folds. NAMFREL also flagged violations of ballot secrecy, like the absence of secrecy folders, voters discussing their votes with others, and ballots being visible to others. In social media, there were multiple reports of overvoting, with some sources stating that the ink bled to the other side. Because some machines experienced overheating, 311 of the 16,000 voting machines had to be replaced. Some voter receipts did not match the candidates that people voted for, causing COMELEC Chairman George Garcia to say that there is a high possibility that people forgot who they were voting for. According to election watchdogs
Kontra Daya and Vote Report PH, there were 1,362 voter reports about glitches. 693 of the reports were about machine errors. The
Department of Education said that 130 out of the 160 election-related complaints were about overvoting cases. Senatorial candidate
Jocelyn Andamo was unable to vote for a party-list group because of a machine error. Actor
Khalil Ramos's party-list vote was disqualified because the machine thought he overvoted.
Disinformation and fake news == Electoral system ==