AUTOMATED ELECTION SYSTEMS

Chairman J. Andres Bautista

May 17, 2017

MANUAL AUTOMATED
Polling precinct  200 voters per precinct  Approximately 800-1000 voters
per clustered precinct
Ballot  Had blanks where voters write  20-24 inches long
down the names of selected  Up to 600 names on the front and
candidates back
 Ballots can be used  Oval printed beside the name of
interchangeably candidates
 Precinct-specific and bar coded
Voting Period  7:00 – 3:00 PM  7:00 – 5:00 pm

*Nagkakaroon ng milagro pag gabi.

Counting  Tedious manual process  Done through the vote counting
conducted in public and without machine that uses on Optical
interruption Mark Reader (OMR)-based
technology
Canvassing  Takes 3-4 weeks to complete  Takes 9 days to complete
Voting Receipt  None  VCM prints it

 500 is the optimum

o Early voting as a solution – like in Korea, US, Australia
 Anyone can vote in advance, anywhere
 Only works through an efficient postal system + national ID
 Manual is still the best form! But it only works when there are a few candidates and few
people.

Manual System of Canvassing

Election Municipality / Provincial National Board

Returns City Board Board of Canvassers

•Precinct •Congress
•Comelec

Electronic Transmission

 Election returns brought to Central COMELEC Server, Back-up Server, Citizens Arm,
KBP, PPCRV, M/CBC/PBC/NBC
 92,509 vote counting machines

Danielle Joanna C. Gaite C2019 Election Law – Atty. Alberto C. Agra

Strengths of Technology

1. Ballots are precinct-specific

2. Machine scans every ballot fed to it and saves images in DS cards
3. Machine has “audit log”
4. Machine prints 30 copies of the Election Returns

Transparency Features and Public Engagement

1. COMELEC Advisory Council composed of Government and CSO Representatives

a. DICT experts
2. Source Code Review
3. Mandatory Random Manual Audit of the System
4. Observation of facilities and consultation with political party representatives during
election preparation
5. Election results website
a. Soft copy of each election return

RE-BRANDING OF COMELEC
- Away from the image of “dayaan”
- Bumoto nang tama – pinag-aralan, pinag-isipan
- Ministerial job of COMELEC

Objectives for 2016 Elections

1. Credible Elections
Credible elections = should not only be honest + but also perceived to be honest
 Clean, honestly, orderly, peaceful and free elections
 Elections are the soul of a democracy
 Anong uri ng kandidato meron sa Pilipinas?
o Nanalo
o Nadaya
 First time that people concede
o Brings down political tensions; this should not just happen in the national
level, but also to the local positions

2. Enhancing the Voting Experience

 Voters are the true client of COMELEC
 Looking out for the comfort and convenience of the voter
 High voter turn-out strengthens credibility

General Strategy – ICE TEA

1. Inspire the COMELEC Workforce

2. Consult our stakeholders
3. Engage our stakeholders and critics
4. Be Transparent
5. Efficient and
6. Accountable

Danielle Joanna C. Gaite C2019 Election Law – Atty. Alberto C. Agra

Specific Approach
1. Improve upon 2010 and 2013 performance
2. Identify key result areas / performance indicators (KRA/KPIs)
3. Create performance scorecard

COMELEC PERFORMANCE SCORECARD

 Keep improving
 Voter turnout – within the Philippines, outside, local absentee voters, PWD, detainee
o People had a “real choice”
o Debates
o Social media
o 30 days of voting overseas – can be either in the PH Embassy in Washington,
D.C. or through post / mail
o Early voting for PWDs, seniors bill in Congress
 More female voters than male voters
 4 out of 5 candidates are male
o In time, gender equal number of candidates
 1 out of 5 winners are female
 How did we print only in 49 days?
o Shorter ballot, change the format, fill up the spaces
o 27 inches to 20 inches
o Savings of time, ink, paper, putting in the ballots
 Better voter education campaign
o Targeted to the youth, so done in schools
o 40-45% is youth vote (18-35)
o New formats every time
 Utilization of social media
 Accuracy – 3 precincts per district audit
o Random manual audit
o Transmission of results
 Earlier transmission, better
 Surveys and checks and balances - accurate in measuring…usually
 More BGAN – broadband global area network, we NEED signal
o Voter Receipt
o Audio support for disable voters
 Security
o Digital signature
 Machine signature + 3 BEI signatures
o 256-bit data encryption
 Telegram secret chat
o Protection of memory card
 Old: CF cards cannot simultaneously save data in main and backup cards
 New: SD Cards capable to simultaneously save data in the main and
backup cards
 Regional hubs
o UV-detection feature
 Transparency
o Mock elections – 40 locations
o Source code review – 7 months before the 2016 elections, 3 months before 2016
elections

Danielle Joanna C. Gaite C2019 Election Law – Atty. Alberto C. Agra

  Very technical
o Public Ballot Printing Tracking System
o Results Website
 Election Services
o Accessible Polling Place
o Indigenous Peoples Polling Place
o Legal Assistance
o Medical Assistance
o Fewer election protest cases
o Less election related violence
 Barangay elections are more hotly contested
 Local usually more contested than national
o Accessibility audit
o Mall registration

Why is polling May here and November in the States?

 We need the schools and the teachers. Dapat walang pasok.
 Sembreak yung October Barangay elections.

Danielle Joanna C. Gaite C2019 Election Law – Atty. Alberto C. Agra