• CHERYL G. CRUZ
The Commission on Elections is reminding all candidates – elected or not – as well as political parties to file their respective Statement of Contributions and Expenditures (SOCE) on or before June 11, or within 30 days from the midterm polls.
All official candidates, political parties, and party-lists should file their SOCE even if not elected, did not incur expenses or receive any contribution, did not pursue or continue their campaign, those who self-funded their campaign, or those who withdrew their candidacy, unless the withdrawal was done officially before the start of the campaign period, the Comelec said in an advisory.
The notarized SOCE should be personally signed by the candidate, or by the party treasurer of political party and party-list. It must be filed within 30 days from the midterm elections, or until June 11, before the appropriate office of the Comelec.
Submissions via registered mail, electronic mail, courier, or messenger services shall not be allowed and accepted, the poll body said, adding that it is accepting in-person submissions even on Saturdays and holidays, from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
“The deadline shall be final and non-extendible. No elected candidate shall assume office unless the submission of SOCE is complied with,” it added.
The Comelec also said May 16 that voter turnout in last Monday’s national and local elections was at record-breaking 82.20 percent.
This means that of the 69,673,653 registered voters, local absentee voters, and registered overseas voters, 57,350,968 cast their votes, the highest voter turnout in the history of midterm polls, the Comelec said.
This is the second highest turnout since the presidential elections in 2022, when more than 55 million of the 65 million registered voters cast their votes.
In Bacolod City, the turnout in this year’s elections was around 87 percent, or 309,413 actual voters from the 355,880 registered voters.
Negros Occidental posted an 83.22 percent turnout, or 1,369,632 actual voters out 2,001,732 registered voters, the Comelec-Negros Island Region earlier said as per a Philippine News Agency report, adding that Negros Oriental logged an 85.23 percent turnout, or 831,963 actual voters versus the province’s 976,185 registered voters while Siquijor province posted 91.84 percent, or 74,758 from the 81,404 registered voters. | CGC
