NEW YORK, USA — Due to a technical difficulty with one of the vote-counting machines (VCMs) used in overseas absentee voting, the Philippine Consulate General in New York has momentarily ceased ballot feeding at the Kalayaan Hall. 

The Consulate General stated in an advisory dated April 21, 2022 (United States time) that the technical issue occurred during the latter stages of the ballot feeding process when one of the two remaining ballots became stuck within one of the VCMs.

The consulate stated that because the poll body could not respond immediately due to the time difference, they opted to begin supplying the remaining ballots on Monday, April 25.

“The Consulate General of the Philippines in New York informs the public that it had to suspend the ballot feeding at the Kalayaan Hall this afternoon after one of its Vote Counting Machines (VCMs) encountered a technical issue,” the Consulate said. 

“The technical issue was encountered during the later part of the ballot feeding process when one of the two remaining ballots got stuck inside one of the VCMs. It was witnessed by the election observers who were present and was also captured on our live Facebook video stream,” it added.

Consul General Elmer Cato announced on Thursday that the Philippine Consulate General in New York has mailed out 70% of ballots to Filipino overseas voters under its jurisdiction.

The overseas absentee voting (OAV) period for the May 9 elections began on April 10 and will end on May 9, the Philippines’ election day.

According to Comelec data, 1,697,215 overseas Filipinos are registered to vote in the 2022 elections.

– WhatALife!

Source: (inquirer.net)

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Also Read: Guide to Overseas Absentee Voting (OFW voting) in Elections 2022