FACT CHECK: Caloocan mayoral candidate Sonny Trillanes did not concede

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Sonny Trillanes is running for Caloocan's mayoral seat, not a senatorial position as the false post stated, and as of 6:30 pm of May 12, there are still no official election results from the Comelec

Claim: Former senator and Caloocan City mayoral candidate Antonio “Sonny” Trillanes IV conceded a senatorial candidacy 

Rating: FALSE

Why we fact-checked this: A Facebook page named “SNN” with 130,000 followers posted the claim on May 12, 2025. 

The post included Trillanes’s name and image, with the caption, “Breaking News, Senatorial candidate Antonio Trillanes IV concedes.” It also featured the logo and name of the page. 

The post further stated, “Magbagong buhay ka muna brad.” (Change your lifestyle first.)

In the comment section, users criticized Trillanes’ chance of winning and joked about him changing careers instead of running in the elections.

As of writing, the post has garnered 656 reactions, 242 comments, and 45 shares.

It continues to circulate online, particularly in the Facebook group “Protect Vice President Sara Duterte.”

The facts: The post is misleading. Trillanes is running for mayor in Caloocan, not for a senatorial position.   

The caption in the Facebook post incorrectly referred to him as a “senatorial candidate.” The report that he conceded referred to his loss in the 2022 senatorial race elections. 

No official results yet: Comelec has not yet released results for the 2025 midterm elections.

A candidate who is conceding means he or she has acknowledged defeat, often upon seeing an insurmountable gap in the results.

Earlier at 10:00 a.m., Trillanes’s official volunteer page reposted a video of him casting his vote in Caloocan.

Pro-Duterte page: The Facebook page that posted the false claim has been posting pro-Duterte content. Trillanes is a known critic of the Duterte family.   

In 2024, Trillanes filed a drug smuggling complaint against Paolo Duterte and Vice President Sara Duterte’s husband, Mans Carpio. 

In the same year, he also filed corruption complaints regarding an alleged anomalous project against former President Rodrigo Duterte and his long-time ally, Bong Go. 

Furthermore, he ran as a senatorial candidate on former Vice President Leni Robredo’s slate in the 2022 elections, opposing the Duterte-backed candidates.

Previous fact-checks: Rappler has previously fact-checked false claims about candidates of the 2025 midterm elections:

• FACT CHECK: Pamplona mayor not disqualified in bid for Negros Oriental district representative
• FACT CHECK: Makabayan bloc senatorial slate has not been disqualified
• FACT CHECK: Cagayan De Oro congressional bet Lordan Suan has not been disqualified
• FACT CHECK: No survey conducted in Cebu – Pulse Asia 

– Lyndee Buenagua/Rappler.com

Lyndee Buenagua is a third year college student and an alumna of Aries Rufo Journalism Fellowship of Rappler for 2024.

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