‘Fake vote tallies, DQs top poll day disinformation’

MANILA, Philippines — Fabricated vote tallies and fake reports of candidate disqualifications were among false claims that spread online days before and during the May 9 elections, according to a report of collaborative fact-checking initiative Tsek.ph.

Like in the previous fact-checks conducted by the initiative, Tsek.ph said the misleading and deceptive narratives that spread during election day largely targeted now presumptive president Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and rival Vice President Leni Robredo, along with their running mates presumptive vice president Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte-Carpio and Sen. Francis Pangilinan.

“Polling precincts were hours away from closing and votes had yet to be counted, but social media were swamped with manufactured tallies of election results showing either Marcos or Robredo leading the race,” read the report authored by University of the Philippines journalism professors Yvonne Chua and Maria Diosa Labiste.

Ten of the 21 fact-checks published regarding fake vote tallies showed Marcos leading the race, while five were about Robredo taking the lead.

The others showed Duterte or Pangilinan leading, as well as various combinations of the presidential and vice presidential candidates.

According to Tsek.ph, fake results came as early as 8:27 a.m. or about two hours after polling precincts opened. Under Commission on Elections rules, transmission of votes starts only after the end of the voting period.

“Nearly all the posts utilized eye-catching graphics. Some tried to mimic the interface of mainstream media such as Rappler’s live election results and TV5’s infographic on the media reach and engagement of candidates. Both were passed off as real poll results,” read the report.

“The bogus counts were accompanied by allegations that election results had been preprogrammed. One such post collected 145,000 shares,” it added.

Chua and Labiste said the release of the fake tallies “demonstrates the country’s evolving disinformation playbook on social media that was first thrust into global consciousness following the 2016 presidential election.”

Two days before the elections, Tsek.ph also noted bogus claims of candidate disqualifications targeting members of the Makabayan bloc and former Bayan Muna representative Neri Colmenares, who is running for Senate.

“The false claim was debunked by Comelec, but the falsehood persisted throughout the voting hours,” read the report.

“In 2019, the same ploy was used against the Makabayan bloc by Facebook pages identified with police offices and military reservists. The false information was posted in the wee hours of election day,” it added.

It also noted incidents of red-tagging targeting not just members of the Makabayan bloc, but also senatorial bets of the Robredo-Pangilinan tandem.

“Other false claims circulating on election day include poll cheating such as vote buying and the fate of reelectionist Sen. Leila de Lima,” Tsek.ph reported.