The sanctity of an election lies in the participation of the people. Through an election, a consensus is formed. It may not be forced by the law for each eligible citizen to vote, but in a healthy democracy, it is the people’s way of choosing leaders who will represent them. And in these crucial post-pandemic times, someone who will lead the way to our country’s recovery and resiliency.
Over the weekend, overseas Filipinos have started to cast their votes for the May 2022 polls. On social media, photos and videos of lines forming outside embassies or consulates have emerged, showing how eager each voter is to participate in this democratic exercise.
Data from the Commission on Elections (Comelec) revealed that close to 1.7 million – or exactly 1,697,215 – Filipino voters overseas registered. This is, however, lower than previous election cycles partly due to the pandemic when thousands of Filipinos returned to the country. Overseas Filipinos from the Middle East and Africa lead the number, with 786,997 registered voters, while those from Asia Pacific are next, with 450,282 voters.
Overseas voters will be voting in Philippines posts, embassies, or consulates. Since they reside overseas, they will only vote for candidates in the national field – president, vice president, 12 senators, and one party-list. They have until May 9 to vote, in sync with the closing of polls in the Philippines.
Though each and every Filipino voter in the world must have his or her vote counted, the Comelec is looking into suspending the election in four Philippine posts, which covers seven countries experiencing political turmoil – Iraq, Algeria, Chad, Tunisia, Libya, Afghanistan, and Ukraine.
The Comelec, sitting en banc, also approved temporarily suspending voting in Shanghai, China due to the surge of Covid cases in the city. While in Hong Kong, police authorities there have requested Filipinos to come back some other days to avoid the crowd that has formed during the first day of voting.
This year’s elections has the highest number of registered voters at 65.7 million, higher than the 61.8 million who registered last 2019. The number of overseas voters is, in fact, not insignificant as the 1.7 million is higher than the one million registered voters in the entire Cordillera Administrative Region (CAR). Overseas Filipinos also have an “influence” on their families’ decision-making process as most are not only breadwinners but due to the ease of communication, they regularly talk with their family members using online apps.
What is commendable in this overseas voting process is that each foreign post will conduct the election in various ways that would be most suitable to Filipinos in that area. Some will utilize the automated election system, while others will implement the postal method – using the two-way postage system so that voters could easily mail back their ballots after they have voted.
The Comelec also said that it has passed a resolution allowing Filipinos abroad to vote in Philippine posts other than where they are currently registered. So, overseas voters who had to move after the close of the registration period to another country or sea under jurisdiction of another post, can still vote if the said post is implementing personal voting.
All efforts are being done by the Comelec to ensure that each and every vote is counted and that each and every Filipino – wherever he or she may be in the world – has the chance to vote not only as personal duty but more so for the future of the land where the voter truly belongs.