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Advocates Philippines
Comelec Races Against Time: 27M Ballots Printed, More On The Way
Photo credit: Comelec
The Commission on Elections (Comelec) is in full swing, churning out official ballots for the May 12 polls. Since kicking off the reprinting process in late January, the poll body has already printed a staggering 27 million ballots—about 37% of the total 72,107,420 needed.
Ballot Printing Ahead of Schedule
Comelec Chairperson George Erwin Garcia is optimistic, saying they’ve been exceeding daily printing targets. If all goes well, printing could wrap up between the second and third week of March, with March 19 as the latest possible completion date.
"As far as ballot printing is concerned, we are so far so good," Garcia said during a press briefing at Amoranto Sports Complex in Quezon City.
To speed up the process, Comelec opened a verification facility at Amoranto, housing 250 automated counting machines (ACMs) and 500 additional verifiers for both manual and machine verification.
"If we can verify one million ballots per day here at Amoranto and another one million at the National Printing Office (NPO), that’s two million ballots per day—or 20 million in just 10 days. That’s a solid output," Garcia explained.
So far, three million ballots have already undergone verification at the NPO.
Ballot Printing Continues Despite Candidate Withdrawals
With the elections fast approaching, Comelec is staying the course—even as some senatorial bets drop out.
Printing will not be halted or adjusted for withdrawals, Garcia confirmed. The votes for these candidates will simply be considered stray votes and won’t be counted.
The latest to withdraw is Dr. Willie Ong, a health advocate who cited health reasons in his decision. Ong, who is battling sarcoma (a rare type of cancer), announced his withdrawal in a social media post, stating he wants to focus on his treatment abroad.
Earlier this week, AGRI party-list Rep. Wilbert Lee also bowed out of the Senate race, citing lack of campaign machinery.
Comelec has made accommodations for candidates like Ong, allowing withdrawals without personal appearances as long as they present a doctor’s certification.
What’s Next?
With ballot printing ahead of schedule and verification ramping up, Comelec remains confident that preparations for the May 12 elections will stay on track. Now, all eyes are on whether they’ll hit that March 19 deadline—or even beat it.
Ballot Printing Ahead of Schedule
Comelec Chairperson George Erwin Garcia is optimistic, saying they’ve been exceeding daily printing targets. If all goes well, printing could wrap up between the second and third week of March, with March 19 as the latest possible completion date.
"As far as ballot printing is concerned, we are so far so good," Garcia said during a press briefing at Amoranto Sports Complex in Quezon City.
To speed up the process, Comelec opened a verification facility at Amoranto, housing 250 automated counting machines (ACMs) and 500 additional verifiers for both manual and machine verification.
"If we can verify one million ballots per day here at Amoranto and another one million at the National Printing Office (NPO), that’s two million ballots per day—or 20 million in just 10 days. That’s a solid output," Garcia explained.
So far, three million ballots have already undergone verification at the NPO.
Ballot Printing Continues Despite Candidate Withdrawals
With the elections fast approaching, Comelec is staying the course—even as some senatorial bets drop out.
Printing will not be halted or adjusted for withdrawals, Garcia confirmed. The votes for these candidates will simply be considered stray votes and won’t be counted.
The latest to withdraw is Dr. Willie Ong, a health advocate who cited health reasons in his decision. Ong, who is battling sarcoma (a rare type of cancer), announced his withdrawal in a social media post, stating he wants to focus on his treatment abroad.
Earlier this week, AGRI party-list Rep. Wilbert Lee also bowed out of the Senate race, citing lack of campaign machinery.
Comelec has made accommodations for candidates like Ong, allowing withdrawals without personal appearances as long as they present a doctor’s certification.
What’s Next?
With ballot printing ahead of schedule and verification ramping up, Comelec remains confident that preparations for the May 12 elections will stay on track. Now, all eyes are on whether they’ll hit that March 19 deadline—or even beat it.
Feb 14, 2025
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