FACT CHECK: Bohol congressman Edgar Chatto did not withdraw 2025 reelection bid
Claim: Bohol 1st District Representative Edgar Chatto has announced his decision to withdraw his reelection bid in the upcoming 2025 midterm elections.
Rating: FALSE
Why we fact-checked this: The Facebook post containing the claim has 319 shares, 581 comments, and 545 reactions as of writing. It was posted on April 16 by a page that has previously spread unverified claims about Chatto, including one suggesting that Chatto allegedly received P150 million following Vice President Sara Duterte’s impeachment and that he was supposedly ready to provide aid to his critics to silence them.
The post includes a graphic with the text “BREAKING NEWS: Congressional Candidate Edgar Chatto announces his withdrawal from [the] upcoming election.”
The post’s caption states: “Gi-announce gabii ni Edgar Chatto ang iyahang pag-withdraw isip kandidato pagka-congressman karong umaabot election tungod kini sa iyahang health condition nga dili na niya kaya ang maong trabaho ug kinahanglan na niya magpahuway.”
(Edgar Chatto announced yesterday his withdrawal as a congressional candidate for the upcoming election due to his health condition, which no longer allows him to handle the responsibilities of the job, and he needs to rest.)
The facts: Chatto denied the false claim in a video posted on his official Facebook page on April 16. He urged the public to remain vigilant against fake news, saying: “Mga kahigsuonan, way hunong ang ilang mga fake news ug uban pang pangdaot karong panahona — sama sa gipost sa Facebook nga kuno si Edgar Chatto miwithdraw sa iyang kandidatura pagka-congressman sa 1st congressional district. Dili kini tinuod. Magbinantayon ta sa mga impormasyon nga atong makita ug madungog.”
(Brothers and sisters, their fake news and other forms of defamation have not stopped these days — just like the post on Facebook claiming that Edgar Chatto has withdrawn his candidacy for congressman of the 1st congressional district. This is not true. Let us be cautious with the information we see and hear.)
The false claim surfaced on Holy Wednesday, April 16, just before the nationwide campaign ban began for Maundy Thursday and Good Friday, in line with the Commission on Elections (Comelec) Resolution No. 10999. Under this resolution, all forms of campaigning are banned during these religious holidays. Violators may face penalties under the Omnibus Election Code, such as fines, imprisonment of up to six years, disqualification from holding public office, and loss of the right to vote.
No announcement: Contrary to the claim, Comelec has not confirmed Chatto’s supposed withdrawal. Under Section 73 of the Omnibus Election Code, a candidate who wishes to withdraw their candidacy must submit a written declaration under oath to the same Comelec office where they filed their Certificate of Candidacy. Chatto has not submitted any such document, and no credible local or national news outlet has reported on the alleged withdrawal.
Bohol’s voice in Congress: Chatto is the incumbent representative of Bohol’s 1st district and is seeking reelection in the 2025 midterm polls. Before returning to Congress in 2019, he was governor of Bohol from 2010 to 2019.
In February 2025, Chatto, along with two other Bohol lawmakers, voted for the impeachment of the Vice President. They clarified that their support for the impeachment was not an attack on Duterte but a step toward uncovering the truth, allowing the Senate, as the impeachment court, to review the evidence and decide based on facts and law. – Marjuice Destinado/Rappler.com
Marjuice Destinado is a Rappler intern. She is also a fact-checker and researcher-writer at Explained PH. A third-year political science student at Cebu Normal University (CNU), she serves as the feature editor of Ang Suga, CNU’s official student publication.
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