The Supreme Court (SC) of the Philippines has issued an order for the Commission on Elections (Comelec) and the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) to provide comments on a petition questioning the automated counting of votes for the upcoming 2025 elections.
In a resolution released on May 5, the SC instructed both agencies to respond within ten days to a motion filed by two groups supporting the original petition led by lawyer Israelito Torreon.
The groups supporting Torreon's petition include the National People's Initiative Council Committee and God's People's Initiative.
Torreon, who is also a regional council officer of the Partido Demokratiko Pilipino (PDP) in Davao, expressed optimism through a social media post. He hopes for a resolution before the 2028 elections.
Background of the Petition
The petition was filed on April 3, a month prior to the May 12 midterm elections where Torreon represented several losing senatorial candidates from the PDP slate.
He has previously initiated actions questioning the automated vote processing at the Comelec and has called for investigations into alleged irregularities concerning online voting.
Torreon highlighted concerns about vulnerabilities and statutory gaps within the country's automated election system.
I’m hoping there’s a decision on this before the 2028 polls.
Israelito Torreon