QUIAPO, MANILA – The Commission on Elections (COMELEC) showed off its new vote-counting machines (VCMs) for the 2025 midterm election at the Rappler newsroom on Thursday, June 6.
COMELEC Chairperson George Garcia led the event, explaining how the new technology works.
The new VCMs, made by Korean company Miru Systems, will replace the old machines from Smartmatic which provided election technology for Philippine elections from 2010 to 2022.
The demonstration of the new VCMs were attended by campus journalists, alternative media organizations, and other Rappler partners.
Angela Mae Eronico, Creative Director of AMAPS, tested the VCMs by shading a ballot. She marked the ballot with too many and too few votes on purpose. The machine accepted her ballot but did not count the extra votes.
Vice Chairperson of #PinasALAMIN2025— the special election coverage project of AMAPS—Talitha Dungca tested the “touch screen voting” system.
This system will be used for overseas voting according to Garcia.
He also talked about how the new machines are more cost-effective and use better paper.
“Dati-rati po pagka papel, na ginagamit natin ‘yong balota na ginagamit natin, 160 GSM po ’yon since 2010. Makapal na po ‘yung 160 walang available sa Pilipinas ini-import na ng COMELEC,” he said.
He introduced the new specifications of ballots—a lighter paper with only 90 GSM—to be used for the 2025 elections which can easily be sourced in the Philippines.
”Makikita niyo po na kahit i-shade niyo ‘yan, 90 lang available in the Philippines kasi parang bond paper po ito. Pero kahit i-shade niyo po ito hindi siya tatagos sa ilalim, eh ‘yung dati nga 160 na nga tumatagos pa sa likod,” he said.
During the question-and-answer part of the demonstration, Garcia also mentioned that Miru Systems will provide all technologies related to the midyear election except for the transmission.
He shared that this is done to maintain check and balance,
“Hindi po natin isinama ang transmission, dapat naman talaga. Bakit? Para may check and balance. Bakit naman ‘yung company halimbawa na magsusuply ng machine at saka software, tapos ‘yon pa rin ang transmission? Dapat naman iba” he added.
The new VCMs process ballots faster at 200 millimeters per second.
According to him, the new VCMs have better security features like a QR code and use a small lithium battery, making them easier to move around.
The ballot boxes are more accessible for people with disabilities and do not need transparency servers or cables, making them harder to hack.
Election transparency
Garcia emphasized the importance of transparency and accuracy in voting.
The new system will have no more transparency server but will print election returns immediately and send them to media, servers, and data centers.
“Alam niyo po wala na po tayong transparency server ngayon,” Garcia said.
“Ibig sabihin lahat ng result mula sa presinto pinapadala sa isang transparency server, ayun nabulunan ng seven hours,” he added.
This is pertaining to the 2022 Presidential elections when there were about seven hours of no updates on the election results broadcasted by different entities.
“Nagduda na ang tao bakit nagkaganoon. Ngayon po dahil wala na tayong transparency server, tinanggal na po natin. Magmula sa presinto direct ipapadala sa NAMPREL, PPCRV, majority party, minority party, at media servers,” he said.
According to him, with this method, all entities that will receive the result can compare the data for any discrepancies.
Vandalizing ballots is a no-no
During the demonstration, Garcia asked the audience to draw some doodles or marks on their ballots to test the machines, and so some did. While the VCMs counted the votes, he said that this is illegal and should not be done during the election proper.
He said that this may serve as markers for poll watchers to identify the ballot and can be used for vote-buying.
When asked about if they can be legally held liable, Garcia said “Yes,” and can be reported by anyone.
He said that watchers can report such violations and this information will also be included in COMELEC’s voter education programs.
Voting for Overseas Filipinos
For countries with limited internet access like Libya, China, and Russia, COMELEC plans to use touch screen voting machines.
Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs) will vote at embassies.
Garcia assured that despite challenges like working hours, measures are in place to ensure that votes are counted on election day in the Philippines.
COMELEC aims to reduce delays and improve the accuracy of vote counting.
He assured those ballots from OFWs, who voted one month in advance, would be stored, and counted on the day of the national elections.
“Huwag kayo mag-alala dahil ang pagbilang ng mga balotang iyon, kahit ito ang gamitin (touch screen, automated) ay sa mismong araw pa rin sa election ng Pilipinas,” he said.
According to him, the results will be safekept on the machines.
Garcia also mentioned that interested parties may contact the commission to schedule a demonstration in their area.