The shipping of ballots to different parts of the world for the overseas absentee voting (OAV) will begin next week, as per the Commission on Elections (Comelec) on Tuesday.
“First shipment will be second week of March. We have finished the printing of ballots and right now we have started the packing of the ballots which will be shipped to different posts to be delivered to voters overseas. These envelopes contain the ballots, instructions to voters and also the list of candidates for the 2019 elections,” Elaiza David, Director III at the Office for Overseas Voting, told reporters.
Comelec said majority of the 1,822,173 OAV voters are concentrated in the Middle East and Africa.
The OAV turnout in the 2016 presidential elections was at 31 percent while the recorded participation of voters in the 2013 mid-term polls was at 16 percent.
Filipinos abroad will be voting for national positions only, 12 senators and one party-list group.
The voting period is 30 days, which will begin on April 13, (host country time) and will end on May 13 (Philippine Time).
With this, Comelec spokesperson Jimenez is optimistic that they will surpass the record six years ago.
“In previous years, we have seen a low voter turnout. The atmosphere now is different. I think there are signs that should give us hope that foster a sense of optimism that we will see good numbers this time around,” she said.
