Senator Rodante Marcoleta Faces Election Offense Complaint Over Undeclared Campaign Donations

A formal election offense complaint has been filed against Senator Rodante Marcoleta for purportedly misrepresenting his campaign contributions in his Statement of Contributions and Expenditures (Soce) during the May 2025 polls. The seven-page complaint was lodged with the Commission on Elections (Comelec) on December 5, 2025, by Danilo Arao, lead convener of Kontra Daya, along with the Advocates of Public Interest Law.

Arao stated, "We filed complaints against Sen. Rodante Marcoleta today (December 5) because of his willful and deliberate falsehood in filling out the Statement of Contributions and Expenditures." He further emphasized that such actions are both unlawful and unethical for a public official, insisting that Marcoleta must be held accountable.

The complaint highlights violations of Sections 98 and 107 of the Omnibus Election Code (OEC). Section 98 prohibits any person from making a contribution under a name other than their own, and mandates that candidates record contributions only under the actual contributor's name. Section 107 requires candidates to submit a complete, truthful, and detailed Soce related to the election.

According to the complaint, "There is probable cause to believe that the respondent committed an election offense by knowingly omitting the names of his campaign donors and intentionally misrepresenting that he received no contributions." The allegation continues that Marcoleta publicly acknowledged receiving donations but deliberately declared zero contributions in his Soce, in direct violation of the specified OEC provisions.

In his submitted Soce, Marcoleta declared zero Philippine pesos in contributions while reporting campaign expenditures totaling ₱112,857,951.44. Questions arose over this discrepancy since his Statement of Assets, Liabilities, and Net Worth (SALN) reflected a net worth of only ₱51.9 million.

Marcoleta defended his position by stating that his friends had financially supported his campaign but he refrained from declaring these donations to respect their wish for anonymity.

The Commission on Elections is expected to investigate the allegations, which if proven, could result in sanctions or penalties under election law.