Voters who stayed up late to monitor the 2025 midterm election results were met with confusion and frustration as early figures broadcast by media outlets turned out to be inaccurate. A major glitch at the Commission on Elections (Comelec) led to the duplication of results from thousands of precincts, affecting approximately 5 million votes.

The error stemmed from the data consolidation process at Comelec’s central server, which unintentionally duplicated precinct results. These flawed figures were then automatically transmitted to the five transparency servers used by media organizations, poll watchdogs, and political parties.

Comelec’s IT department addressed the issue around 2:00 a.m. on Tuesday, May 13, after being alerted by technical teams from various media outlets. Corrected files were issued shortly after.

Bong Go Loses 5.2 Million Votes, Still Leads

Among those most heavily impacted was reelectionist Senator Bong Go, who saw his vote total drop by 5.2 million in the corrected count. Despite the substantial reduction, Go retained his lead.

Other senatorial candidates also experienced large vote adjustments. However, the composition of the top 12 Senate winners—known as the “Magic 12”—remained unchanged, with only Rodante Marcoleta and Ping Lacsonswitching positions in the rankings.

Widespread Impact

An internal Comelec review as of 11:44 p.m. revealed the full scope of the glitch:

• 15,001 precincts affected

• 39,280 candidates impacted

• Over 1,400 single-winner positions affected

• Approximately 7,600 candidate rankings adjusted

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Transmission Delays and Data Integrity Concerns

The Comelec had promised a fast transmission of election returns, expecting near-complete results within three hoursusing improved satellite-based systems. But the process was far from smooth.

Although the central system began receiving ERs from more than 93,000 precincts by 7:00 p.m. on May 12, several transparency server workstations failed to receive any files initially. When data did arrive, many files had hash mismatches, while others were blank or corrupted, raising concerns about the reliability and integrity of the automated count.

Comelec’s IT division later explained that the issue stemmed from server synchronization failures, which disrupted the hash verification process. Even after partial recovery, many files remained malformed or in unexpected formats, complicating analysis by transparency server users.

Calls for Accountability

As of now, the Comelec has not released a detailed technical report explaining how the duplication occurred or what measures will be implemented to prevent similar issues in future elections.

Election watchdogs and media groups are urging the poll body to ensure greater transparency, accountability, and oversight of the automated election system.