The Commission on Elections (COMELEC) announced on Thursday that all survey firms must now register with the poll body as part of stricter regulations ahead of the upcoming midterm elections in May this year.
Under Comelec Resolution No. 11117, issued by the COMELEC, anyone conducting or distributing surveys related to the election is now required to register with the poll body.
"During the election period, any person, whether natural or juridical, candidate, or organization that conducts and publicly disseminates an election survey must register with the Political Finance and Affairs Department (PFAD) of the Commission using the Registration Form," the resolution read.
"Only pre-registered entities shall be authorized to conduct and publicly disseminate election surveys,” it added.
Survey firms, obligado nang magparehistro sa @COMELEC bago maglabas ng election surveys | RH 29 @boy_gonzales, DZRH News pic.twitter.com/QDcwMjYmga
— DZRH NEWS (@dzrhnews) February 20, 2025
Firms that have already begun conducting surveys before the resolution was issued will have 15 days to register with the Comelec, starting five days after the resolution is published in the newspaper.
In the event of failure to register within the specified timeframe, their authority to conduct and publish election surveys will be suspended.
Furthermore, the poll body's Education and Information Department has been assigned the responsibility of creating a verification mechanism to authenticate election survey results and prevent the spread of fraudulent surveys falsely attributed to legitimate pollsters.
Meanwhile, media entities that publish survey results will also face stricter regulations. They will be required to disclose the companies that conducted the survey, as well as the individuals or entities that commissioned or funded it.
