LEGAZPI CITY, Albay  (PIA) — The Commission on Elections (Comelec) is determined to use advanced voting technology to enable overseas-based Filipino voters to cast their ballots in the 2025 midterm elections. 

READ https://pia.gov.ph/news/2024/02/23/filipinos-abroad-may-vote-online-in-2025-polls

Comelec Chairperson George Erwin Garcia said the poll body is looking at internet voting or casting the ballot through a website or e-mail to solve the problem of low turnout overseas.

Garcia, was here for the recent launching of “Register Anywhere Program” at the Bicol University campus.

The Comelec cited the dismal turnout of overseas absentee voters in the 2022 general elections. 

He said that of the 1,697,130 registered overseas voters, only 600,000 managed to cast their ballots. 

“It is a slim percent of 12 to 15 million Filipinos working all over the world. Hopefully ay mas tumaas ang bilang ng mga kababayan natin na magparehistro at makapagboto (the number of our countrymen who will register and vote will increase),” he said.

In another vein, Garcia said that the Comelec is improving accessibility and efficiency for the upcoming elections by providing more transparent access for the media and public. 

“Gusto natin sa paglalagay sa SD cards ng lahat ng program, simula sa configuration, hanggang sa printing ng balota, sa source code review international certification at lahat-lahat na para sa 2025 elections, lahat may access at hindi pagbabawalan,” he said. 

(Translation: We want the media and the public to have access to the entire process of preparing SD cards for the 2025 elections, including configuration, ballot printing, source code review, international certification, and everything in between.) (PIA5)