From surprise and shock to outrage, netizens have reacted to the way the Commission on Elections’ partial and unofficial results of the May 9 voting for national officials were being presented and reported by broadcast networks.

They cited an intriguing pattern in the percentage ratios of incoming votes of frontrunner Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and Vice President Leni Robredo in the presidential contest starting at past 10 p.m., or hours after poll precincts nationwide closed on Monday.   

In a Facebook post, netizen Ryan Nazareno pointed out the “consistent 47% difference” in the votes garnered so far by the dictator’s son and namesake and Robredo. He presented a table showing that difference from 8:17 p.m. until 9:47 p.m.

For instance, the table shows that at 8:02 p.m., Robredo got 5.8 million votes and Marcos 12.0 million, or a 47.8% difference. As the counting progressed, that figure was observed with a very slight difference in the next seven updates until 9:47 p.m.

The Comelec, convening as the national board of canvassers, began its canvass on Tuesday. It is not yet certain when the poll body can complete its work. 

“Highly suspicious, indeed!” said Romulo Virola when asked for his comment on Nazareno’s post. But it is “theoretically possible,” said the statistics expert who once headed the then National Statistics and Coordination Board.

Preprogrammed?

Another netizen, JF Hernandez, asked if the pattern of vote percentage ratios was preprogrammed. Where is the lack of variability coming from, she wondered, pointing out that the election returns were transmitted from various parts of the country and could show different voting results. 

Political observers have noted that the Ilocos region was expected to vote heavily for Marcos Jr., and the Bicol region for Robredo.

Another netizen, Carlo Gimena, said it was like running a programmed result and, as described in statistics, “[almost] perfectly linear.”  In an election where there are many variables, this is almost an “impossible scenario,” he said.

In previous posts, Virola raised the need for media outlets to make random audits of the integrity of the Comelec’s transparency servers, and suggested the percentage distribution by regions and the inclusion of precincts in the tabulation.

Vice presidential race

Netizens have posted different tables showing a similar 47% ratios of Robredo’s votes and those of Marcos Jr. Some saw the consistent pattern for the other presidential candidates compared with Marcos Jr. — Sen. Manny Pacquiao, 8-10%; Mayor Francisco “Isko Moreno” Domagoso, 5-7%; and Sen. Panfilo Lacson, 2-3%.  

One made the same observation in the vice-presidential race, with a vote percentage ratios of frontrunning Mayor Sara Duterte over Sen. Francis Pangilinan at around 30 percent and over Sen. Vicente Sotto III at 27%.

More netizens lamented the “magic program.” One said: “We have the slowest internet in Asia. But the fastest election transmission in the world.”

Another noted that in less than two hours, the Comelec server had results for over 50% of the votes, surpassing even the quick transmission of votes in the US elections.