The Commission on Elections (COMELEC) chairman George Garcia says disqualification petitions against candidates will be resolved until June 30.

Comelec Task Force Baklas filed cases against 50 candidates over campaign posters and materials.

The poll body set rules on the maximum size for materials posted in public and where these could be put up. The commission cannot order the removal of campaign materials on private property.

These cases are already being raffled to different Comelec divisions.

Garcia clarified that the filing of a disqualification case does not mean the automatic disqualification of a candidate.

They will weigh the petition, he said, based on the merits and pieces of evidence available.

The Comelec chief said he expects more disqualification petitions from the public on election day.

(For national positions, even if we do not come out with a decision immediately — they may be proclaimed and they may have taken their oath already — but you will only be a congressman on June 30, right?)

He said the Comelec will retain jurisdiction of cases until then.

Comelec earlier said it has the power to suspend the proclamation of winning candidates in the midterm elections if they have pending disqualification cases regardless of grounds.

Garcia said this covers grounds arising from issues on the candidate’s campaign rallies and other election offenses.

Disputes over national positions will be handled by Electoral Tribunals at the House of Representatives and Senate.

A Presidential Electoral Tribunal would handle electoral cases involving the president and vice president.

Meanwhile, Garcia assured the public that the poll body is fully ready for the conduct of the midterm polls as they prepared for contingency measures early on.

He said they are 100 percent ready in terms of final testing and sealing.

The Comelec chief was also confident that the elections would be conducted peacefully, noting that not all violent incidents since late last year were election-related.