[DECODED] Disqualifying Bayan Muna, discrediting Bam Aquino: What spread online in election week

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MANILA, Philippines – Like in past elections, the 2025 midterm polls were not without their chaotic moments on social media.

Presidents and their chosen senatorial slates usually breeze through the midterms, but not this time. Just before a record-high number of voters went to the polls, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. saw his performance and trust ratings drop to their lowest levels.

A lethal brew of incidents further polarized the nation: the impeachment of Vice President Sara Duterte and the arrest and detention in The Hague of her father, former president Rodrigo Duterte. The Duterte social media army quickly mobilized during these crises, ramping up support and sympathy for the family.

Duterte-backed senatorial bets also stepped their political advertising on Facebook, but it was Bam Aquino whose online ads gained the most exposure, on average. The elections, after all, were a chance for politicians — whether they’re backed by the Duterte family or branding themselves as independents — to make their political comebacks.

Fabricated reports on an alleged disqualification case targeted a progressive party-list group just days before the election, and coordinated posts targeting a leading senatorial candidate spread shortly after initial results came in.

International election watchdogs have found that lies and propaganda can take different forms before, during, and after election day. Prior to election day, users may spread disinformation about certain candidates. Allegations of fraud or interference can spread after results come in. Researchers found that even when false claims are spread without intending to deceive others, this can still pose the same harm as election-related lies that are spread deliberately.

To get a better understanding of how Filipinos talked about the midterm polls, The Nerve looked into public Facebook, X, and TikTok posts related to various election discussions shared between May 10 to 14, 2025.

Bayan Muna’s disqualification rumor

Just days before the election, false claims alleged that progressive party-list group Bayan Muna was disqualified from the 2025 election. This false claim came in two forms: a supposed press release from the Commission on Elections (Comelec) and fabricated news reports mimicking legitimate media outlets, including Rappler.

Late at night on Saturday, May 10, Comelec released a statement clarifying that Bayan Muna was not disqualified from the midterm polls. Media organizations also disowned fabricated news reports that shared the same lie.

News organizations and partisan groups were quick to pick up Comelec’s statement. While Facebook posts fact-checking or denouncing the claim outnumbered the lies, some posts continued to amplify the fake disqualification case even after Comelec had debunked it.

Some posts and manufactured headlines that carried the lie also linked Bayan Muna to terrorism. Bayan Muna and other Makabayan groups have been repeatedly targeted by red-tagging campaigns, both online and offline.

Posts on overvoting, technical mishaps

After Filipinos began casting their votes, there were reports of automated counting machines (ACMs) malfunctioning and receipts allegedly showing the wrong candidates. Comelec has often faced scrutiny for the conduct of elections since the country shifted to automated poll systems.

On social media, one specific topic stood out: there were reports of ballots being wrongly read as overvotes, which meant votes for those positions were voided.

Before election day, users reminded voters not to overvote for positions when filling out their ballots. But just as precincts opened on Monday, May 12, there was a surge in public Facebook posts raising concerns about accidental overvoting.

One specific narrative on overvoting claimed that ink from the markers used by voters could bleed through the ballots. These posts claimed voters could accidentally shade another circle on the opposite side of the ballot, which could result in overvoting for the party-list section.

Comelec said that while it’s possible that ink could bleed through, unintentional overvoting due to the thickness of the paper is impossible because no two circles on opposite sides of the ballot overlap.

On X, some users falsely claimed that undervoting could lead to possible manipulation and that their blank slots would be filled out in favor of certain candidates. In an official statement, Comelec assured voters that undervoting is allowed and that voters will be feeding their own ballots into the ACMs. The poll body also said voters can review their votes on the ACM screen after feeding their ballots into the machine.

After Bam Aquino’s surprise finish, posts target his push for free education

The Nerve also looked into posts mentioning senatorial candidates and party lists shared between May 10 and 14. When the first transmission of election results was released to the media shortly after 8 pm on May 12, posts about the national races spiked.

The partial, unofficial election results came with many surprises, and social media was abuzz with various reactions and think pieces. Netizens wondered if the opposition was finally making a comeback, and made guesses on how the next Congress would handle Sara Duterte’s impeachment trial.

It was also after the first few transmissions when there was a surge in posts focused on senatorial candidate Bam Aquino and his platform centered on education. Partial and unofficial results showed Aquino landing a surprise No. 2 finish.

As early as 10:30 am on Tuesday, May 13 — only 14 hours after the first transmission of results — Facebook posts discredited Aquino’s work on institutionalizing free education in state universities and colleges.

In 2017, when Aquino was senator, he sponsored and authored Senate Bill No. 1304, known as the Free Higher Education for All Act. The bill was later signed into law by former president Rodrigo Duterte.

Coordinated Facebook posts said the former president should also be credited for making tertiary education more accessible to Filipinos. At least 37 posts, all shared within 28 hours of each other, read, “Apparently, Bam Aquino is one of those who kept criticizing and shaming the Duterte admin, and yet, has the balls to take all the credit to himself of that (sic) free tuition for tertiary.”

One Facebook user also shared the same video thanking both Aquino and Duterte to at least 11 Facebook groups, two of which were explicitly for Duterte supporters.

At least eight posts, which addressed Gen Z and Gen Alpha users, shared similarly worded messages that said free education was either “Duterte-coded” or “team-coded” and should not be entirely credited to Aquino. Some of these posts also called him a credit grabber.

Will the election-fueled social media frenzy slow down in the days to come? – with reports from Patrisha Estrada/Rappler.com

Decoded is a Rappler series that explores the challenges and opportunities that come with living in transformative times. It is produced by The Nerve, a data forensics company that enables changemakers to navigate real-world trends and issues through narrative and network investigations. Taking the best of human and machine, we enable partners to unlock powerful insights that shape informed decisions. Composed of a team of data scientists, strategists, award-winning storytellers, and designers, the company is on a mission to deliver data with real-world impact.

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