Comelec defends self from ‘trending’ issue

The release of partial election results by the Commission on Elections (Comelec) could not be considered as trending, a poll body official said on Wednesday. “Hindi na issue yung trending kasi wala na, tapos na eleksyon (Trending is no longer an issue because the elections are over) ... trending no longer exists," Comelec spokesman James Jimenez told reporters in an interview. Jimenez was reacting to former President Joseph Estrada’s claim that the release of partial election results even before the canvassing constitutes trending. Estrada is ranking second in unofficial tallies on presidential candidates. According to Jimenez, trending means coming out with a small sample that could somehow dictate public opinion and change the minds of the voters in the process. He noted that the Comelec first released initial election results late Monday right after the polls closed at 7 p.m. On Tuesday, the Comelec released the last batch of partial uncanvassed results showing Senator Benigno “Noynoy" Aquino III, Makati Mayor Jejomar Binay, and Senator Ramon Bong Revilla as the leading presidential, vice-presidential, and senatorial candidates, respectively. The tally was based on 30,431,735 votes. On Wednesday, the Comelec — sitting as the National Board of Canvassers (NBOC) — came out with partial canvassed results where the leading senatorial candidate was Senator Jinggoy Estrada. The tally was based on 8.33 percent of the certificates of canvass (COC) to be sent by the Provincial Board of Canvassers (PBC). The NBOC will base its proclamation on the COCs sent by the PBC, which will receive COCs from the city and municipal board of canvassers. On the other hand, Congress, sitting as the NBOC, will serve as the canvassing board for the position of president and vice president. They are set to convene on May 31. - Kimberly Jane Tan/KBK/RSJ, GMANews.TV