Comelec Chair George Garcia shows a sample of the electronic ballot during the Local Source Code Review of the Automated Election Systems (AES) in Makati City on October 11, 2024. Jonathan Cellona, ABS-CBN News/file

MANILA — The Commission on Elections (Comelec) has received a total 246 petitions against the candidacies of individuals gunning for local and national positions in the 2025 midterm elections, the poll body said Thursday.

• Comelec expects deluge of last-minute COC filing for 2025 elections

Citing data as of 5 p.m. Wednesday, Comelec spokesman John Rex Laudiangco said of the total number, 104 are petitions to declare as nuisance candidates in local positions, while 24 are petitions to cancel or deny due course to the certificates of candidacies (COC) filed.

“Meron na ring 1 na nag-file petition for disqualification at ito ay kinukwestyon dahil na meron na pong in possession of a disqualification sa isang aspirante for senator,” Laudiangco said.

The Comelec earlier released its initial list of 66 candidates for the senatorial race in the 2025 elections, which include, among others, embattled religious leader Apollo Quiboloy, who is facing various child abuse and human trafficking charges in the Philippines and the United States.

• Quiboloy, 65 others make it to Comelec’s initial list of Senate candidates

“Asahan po natin ang pangako ni Chairman [George] Garcia, pipiliting matapos ng komisyon, ang dalawang dibisyon ng komisyon, ang lahat ng kaso po sa loob ng Oktubre. Kung may aapela pa po sa commission en banc at tatapusin ito ng Nobyembre nang sa ganoon po, ma-finalize natin ang listahan by December at makapag-imprenta na po tayo ng balota,” he said.

The Comelec said that in considering one as nuisance candidate, the law department “used standards such as presence or absence of even a modicum of inclination or propensity to serve the public or be of service to others, and of any indication as to ideology, political ideas, or platforms of government necessary of senators.” 

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