Philippine midterms: did pro-Duterte candidates benefit from ‘China-funded' troll farms?
A formal complaint has accused candidates backed by former Philippine president Rodrigo Duterte of gaining an unfair advantage in Monday's midterm elections through 'China-funded' digital disinformation campaigns.
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Backed by forensic evidence and submitted to the Commission on Elections (Comelec), the complaint has renewed scrutiny of suspected foreign interference in Philippine politics – echoing a broader pattern of cyber espionage claims tied to Beijing.
While some cybersecurity experts say the claims are credible given recent arrests and mounting geopolitical tensions, others caution that definitive attribution remains technically elusive.
The complaint, filed with Comelec by Filipino citizen Dillan Mangilit, includes traffic logs, bot activity reports and metadata trails that allegedly point to coordinated foreign-backed efforts to amplify pro-Duterte content.
It argued that these activities violated the Fair Election Act and Section 261 of the Omnibus Election Code, which bars candidates from receiving foreign political contributions.
Senator Bong Go (centre) gestures during a motorcade in Manila, the Philippines, on May 7. He is among the 15 candidates named in the complaint. Photo: EPA-EFE
A total of 15 candidates are named in the complaint as supposed beneficiaries of the content amplification, which include Duterte and his sons Paolo and Sebastian, as well as long-time allies and incumbent senators Bong Go and Ronald dela Rosa, who ranked first and third in the elections, respectively, based on partial and unofficial vote counts so far.
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