Jamaine Punzalan

Voters (R) mark their ballots while others wait in line for their turn at a polling station during the mid-term election in Manila on May 12, 2025. Millions of Filipinos headed to the polls May 12 in a mid-term election widely seen as a referendum on the explosive feud between President Ferdinand Marcos and Vice President Sara Duterte. Ted Aljibe, AFP

Article (news)

Agence France-Presse

<div><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib" style="width:960px"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1747029825500AFP__20250512__46AX3ZP__v1__Preview__PhilippinesVote.jpg" style="width:960px" class="fr-fic fr-dib"/><span class="fr-inner" style="text-align:left">Voters (R) mark their ballots while others wait in line for their turn at a polling station during the mid-term election in Manila on May 12, 2025. Millions of Filipinos headed to the polls May 12 in a mid-term election widely seen as a referendum on the explosive feud between President Ferdinand Marcos and Vice President Sara Duterte. <em>Ted Aljibe, AFP </em></span></span></span>MANILA -- Millions of Filipinos braved long lines and soaring temperatures Monday to vote in a mid-term election seen as choosing sides in an explosive feud between President Ferdinand Marcos and impeached Vice President Sara Duterte.</div><p>With temperatures hitting 34 degrees Celsius (93 Fahrenheit) in some places, George Garcia, head of the Commission on Elections (Comelec), said some voting machines were &quot;overheating&quot;.</p><p>&quot;It&#x27;s slowing the voting process,&quot; he told reporters at a prison in southern Manila where inmates were casting ballots.</p><p>&quot;Due to the extreme heat, the ink (on the ballots) does not dry immediately, and the ballot ends up stuck on the scanners,&quot; Garcia said, adding officials in some areas were resorting to aiming electric fans at the machines.</p><p>Monday&#x27;s election will decide more than 18,000 posts, from seats in the House of Representatives to hotly contested municipal offices.</p><p>It is the battle for the Senate, however, that carries potentially major implications for the presidential election in 2028.</p><p>The 12 senators chosen nationally Monday will form half the jury in an impeachment trial of Duterte later this year that could see her permanently barred from public office.</p><div><a class="fr-green fr-strong" href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/nation/2025/5/12/vp-sara-more-than-2-duterte-bets-have-realistic-chance-at-senate-seats-1224">VP Sara: &#x27;More than 2&#x27; Duterte bets have realistic chance at Senate seats</a></div><p>Duterte&#x27;s long-running feud with former ally Marcos erupted in February when she was impeached by the House for alleged &quot;high crimes&quot;, including corruption and an assassination plot against the president.</p><p>Barely a month later, her father -- former president Rodrigo Duterte -- was arrested and sent to the International Criminal Court in The Hague to face a charge of crimes against humanity over his deadly drug crackdown.</p><div><a class="fr-green fr-strong" href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/world/2025/5/9/prosecutors-victims-have-until-june-9-to-submit-input-on-duterte-challenge-of-jurisdiction-1326">ICC sets deadline to submit observations on Duterte challenge of jurisdiction</a></div><div><a class="fr-green fr-strong" href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/nation/2025/5/8/icc-prosecutor-submits-second-batch-of-evidence-vs-duterte-case-1407">ICC prosecutor submits second batch of evidence vs Duterte</a></div><p>On Monday, 53-year-old Roland Agasa, one of the country&#x27;s 68 million registered voters, said the feud had taken a mental toll heading into election day.</p><p>&quot;The government is getting stressful,&quot; he said outside a Manila elementary school where the polling station was on the fourth and fifth floors.</p><p>&quot;I hope we choose the deserving, those who can help the country,&quot; Agasa said, adding he planned to wait until the day cooled before braving the stairs to cast his vote.</p><p>&quot;There was no pushing, but it was cramped. It was difficult, but we endured so that we could vote,&quot; Rizza Bacolod, 32, said at the same location.</p><p>Marcos cast his vote at an elementary school in his family&#x27;s traditional stronghold of Ilocos Norte province. His mother Imelda, 95, was at his side.</p><div><a class="fr-green fr-strong" href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/regions/2025/5/11/marcos-jr-mom-imelda-cast-vote-in-ilocos-norte-0756">Marcos encounters ACM error while feeding ballot</a></div><div><br/></div><div><strong>NUMBERS GAME</strong></div><p>Sara Duterte, who cast her vote at a high school in her family&#x27;s southern bailiwick of Davao, will need nine votes in the 24-seat Senate to preserve any hope of a future presidential run.</p><p>Heading into Monday, seven of the candidates polling in the top 12 were endorsed by Marcos, while four were aligned with his vice president.</p><p>Two, including the president&#x27;s independent-minded sister Imee Marcos, were &quot;adopted&quot; as honorary members of the Duterte family&#x27;s PDP-Laban party on Saturday.</p><p>The move to add Marcos and television personality Camille Villar to the party&#x27;s slate was intended to add &quot;more allies to protect the Vice President against impeachment&quot;, according to the party resolution.</p><p>Despite his detention at The Hague, Rodrigo Duterte remains on the ballot in Davao city, where he is seeking to retake his former job as mayor.</p><div><iframe width="1250" height="703" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/nhsW4jHDLiE" title="Halalan 2025: The ABS-CBN Special Marathon Coverage of the 2025 Philippine Elections" frameBorder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe></div><div><br/></div><div><br/></div><div><strong>ELECTION VIOLENCE</strong></div><p>As polls opened Monday, two men were killed and seven wounded in the central Philippines when men fired on a group outside a local party headquarters from a moving vehicle.</p><p>The Philippines has a long history of election violence, with armed groups of political rivals routinely fighting over positions that control local government spending.</p><p>A day before, at least two people were killed in a clash between supporters of rival political camps in southern Mindanao island&#x27;s autonomous Muslim region, the Philippine army reported.</p><div><a class="fr-green fr-strong" href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/regions/2025/5/12/4-patay-sa-barilan-sa-basilan-isang-araw-bago-ang-halalan-1353">4 patay sa barilan sa Basilan isang araw bago ang halalan</a></div><p>National police have been on alert for more than a week, and around 163,000 officers have been deployed to secure polling stations, escort election officials and guard checkpoints.</p><p>Comelec last week said it had recorded 81 acts of &quot;politically related&quot; violence between January 12 and May 7. Police told AFP that 16 of those had resulted in death.</p><div><a class="fr-green fr-strong" href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/regions/2025/5/12/2-dead-5-wounded-in-silay-city-shooting-0937">2 dead, 7 wounded in Silay City shooting on election day</a></div>

<p>Millions of Filipinos braved long lines and soaring temperatures Monday to vote in a mid-term election seen as choosing sides in an explosive feud between President Ferdinand Marcos and impeached Vice President Sara Duterte.</p>

Millions of Filipinos braved long lines and soaring temperatures Monday to vote in a mid-term election seen as choosing sides in an explosive feud between President Ferdinand Marcos and impeached Vice President Sara Duterte.

Sweltering Philippines votes with Marcos-Duterte feud center stage

News

Entertainment

Lifestyle

Sports

Metro.Style

More

Sudoku

Word of the Day

Lotto

Horoscope

Nation

Sweltering Philippines votes with Marcos-Duterte feud center stage

Agence France-Presse,

Cecil Morella

Published May 12, 2025 09:04 AM PHT

|

Updated May 12, 2025 05:55 PM PHT

Read More:

ABSNews

ANC promo

Halalan 2025

elections

2025 elections

midterm elections

May elections

Marcos

Duterte

ABS-CBN Newsletter

Your go-to source for the latest news, entertainment highlights, exclusive interviews, and updates on your favorite Kapamilya stars.

ABS-CBN Newsletter

Your go-to source for the latest news, entertainment highlights, exclusive interviews, and updates on your favorite Kapamilya stars.

Sign Up

I have read and agree to the Terms and Privacy Policy.

ABS-CBN is the leading media and entertainment company in the Philippines, offering quality content across TV, radio, digital, and film. Committed to public service and promoting Filipino values, ABS-CBN continues to inspire and connect audiences worldwide.

Corporate

Investors

Governance

International Distribution

Corporate

Governance

Investors

International Distribution

NPC Seal of Registration

Privacy Policy

AI Policy

Terms of Service

Advertise with Us

© 2026 ABS-CBN Corporation. All Rights Reserved.

NPC Seal of Registration

Privacy Policy

Terms of Service

AI Policy

Advertise with Us

© 2026 ABS-CBN Corporation. All Rights Reserved.

NPC Seal of Registration

Privacy Policy

Terms of Service

AI Policy

Advertise with Us

© 2026 ABS-CBN Corporation. All Rights Reserved.