Two individuals fill out test ballots for the 2022 Philippine national elections at the Consulate General in Los Angeles. | Photo courtesy of the Philippine Consulate General in Los Angeles

Eligible Filipino voters in US to receive ballots by mail

ELIGIBLE Filipino voters can begin casting their ballots about a month ahead of the May 9 Philippine national elections.

The monthlong overseas voting period, from April 10 to May 9, will enable registered Filipino voters to vote for their preferred president, vice president, senatorial and party-list representatives.

“In North America (U.S. and Canada) where overseas voting is going to be by mail, the ballots will be sent out upon the start of the voting period,” the Commission on Elections (COMELEC) spokesperson James Jimenez wrote on Twitter. “Expect to receive your ballots after April 10.”

Overseas voting in the United States will be done by mail and registered overseas voters included in the certified list of voters released by COMELEC will receive ballot packets through their registered mailing addresses.

A representative of the Philippine Consulate General in Los Angeles shows members of the media one of the Vote Counting Machines sent by the Commission on Elections, which will count the votes of registered Filipino voters who submit their mail-in ballots to the Consulate office during the overseas vote period from April 10 to May 9. | Photo courtesy of the Philippine Consulate General in Los Angeles

All election paraphernalia, consisting of the Vote Counting Machines (VCM) and sealed ballots, that were shipped by Comelec from Manila have arrived in Los Angeles, the Philippine Consulate General in LA announced.

After filling up their ballot, voters can either mail their ballot back to the Consulate using the envelope and stamp provided by the COMELEC, or drop it off at the Consulate during office hours.
All ballots must be received by the Consulate before 4:00 a.m. on May 9, 2022 (PDT). Ballots received after this time will be considered “invalid” and not be counted.

Ballots received by the Consulate between April 10 and May 9 will be submitted into the VCMs by the Consulate General’s Special Boards of Election Inspectors every Monday and Thursday, beginning at 9:00 a.m. during the voting period until it closes at 4:00 a.m. on May 9, 2022 (PDT), upon which a final count of all the ballots shall commence.

Accredited poll watchers and members of the media are also invited to observe the biweekly ballot feedings, as well as the final count.

Outside of the Philippines, over 1.5 million Filipinos overseas are registered to vote for the 2022 national elections, with nearly 200,000 registered in the United States, according to the COMELEC.

The Philippine Consulate General in LA covers Southern California (the counties of Los Angeles, Orange, San Diego, Imperial, Riverside, San Bernardino, Ventura, Santa Barbara, Kern, and San Luis Obispo); Southern Nevada covering the counties of Clark, Lincoln and Nye; and the state of Arizona.