BY ATTY. JULIUS GREGORY B. DELGADO
POINTERS DURING VOTING UNDER GENERAL INSTRUCTIONS – PART I
The 12 May 2025 National and Local Elections is fast approaching, and the Commission on Elections (COMELEC) has issued COMELEC Resolution No. 11076 (General Instructions for the Electoral Boards on the Process of Voting, Counting, & Transmission of Election Results for the 12 May 2025 National, Local, & Bangsamoro Parliamentary Elections). One of the changes in this upcoming elections is an earlier voting set from 5:00 a.m. to 7:00 a.m. exclusively for persons with disability, senior citizens (including assistors), and pregnant voters. During regular voting hours from 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m., persons with disability, senior citizens and pregnant voters shall continue to enjoy the priority lane at the polling places. The assistor of these persons with special concerns may also vote if he or she is also a registered voter of the said precinct.
The General Instructions also provides that voting shall be on a first-come-first-served basis and giving of priority numbers is prohibited. Should there be voters who have not yet cast their votes but are within the thirty (30)-meter radius in front of the polling place by seven o’ clock in the evening (7:00 p.m.) of Election Day shall still be allowed to cast their votes. The Poll Clerk shall promptly prepare a complete list in duplicate containing the names of said voters numbered consecutively. The voters so listed shall be called to vote by the Poll Clerk by announcing near the door of the polling place, each name three (3) times in the order in which they are listed. Any voter in the list who is not present or does not respond when called shall no longer be allowed to vote. The said list shall be attached to the Minutes.
With respect to persons with special concerns like illiterate, person with disability, or senior citizen, they shall be allowed an assistor if such fact is indicated in the EDCVL, or although not indicated as a person with disability in the EDCVL, when the disability is readily apparent. If so, such voter may be aided in the preparation of the ballot, by an assistor of voting age, in the following order: (a) Relative within the 4th civil degree of consanguinity or affinity; (b) Person of his confidence who belongs to the same household as that of the voter. For this purpose, the person who usually assists the person with disability or the senior citizen, such as a personal assistant, caregiver, or a nurse shall be considered as a member of the voter’s household; and (c) Any member of the EB.
A voter with physical impairment may be assisted in feeding the ballot into the ACM by the EB member. The EB member shall ensure that the contents of the ballot are not displayed during its feeding into the ACM. In which case, this fact must be recorded in the Minutes. No person, except the members of the EB, may assist an illiterate, person with disability, or senior citizen more than three (3) times. In all cases, the Poll Clerk shall first verify from the illiterate, person with disability, or senior citizen whether said voter authorized a person to help him/her cast his/her vote. If the voter denies the authority of the assistor, any member of the EB may assist such illiterate, person with disability, or senior citizen. The same shall be recorded in the Minutes.