ONWARDS TO A SIMPLIFIED VOTING PROCESS: On Saturday, September 14, 2024, several Filipino community leaders and advocates from Filipino community-based organizations were invited to an all-day briefing and demonstration of the Online Voting and Counting System (OVCS) that will be used by the Commission on Elections (Comelec) during the May 2025 midterm elections in the Philippines. The Kalayaan Hall at the Philippine Center at 447 Sutter Street, San Francisco, was the venue of this highly informative and interactive event.
Internet voting, according to the Comelec, is a highly secure system of casting votes online for approved overseas voters in pre-identified countries and posts (in lay person’s terms, the consulate or embassy).
- We beta-tested the internet voting enrollment process and test voting. The participants were very proactive in asking questions and making recommendations for revisions that will make the internet voting process as easy as 1-2-3.
- We beta-tested the enrollment process, using our smart phones. We used our email addresses to enroll for internet voting. There were a few bugs that were ironed out.
- When the internet voting process is finally rolled out, there will be internet voting kiosks provided at the Consulate —- and qualified staff will be available for assistance.
- A lot of questions were fielded about computer-challenged senior citizens. Suggestions were made regarding volunteers to help seniors vote.
For media inquiries, contact ovs@pcgsanfrancisco.org. Email overseasvoting@comelec.gov.ph or visit www.comelec.gov.ph for updates.
Before more information about internet-based voting can be disseminated, here are the following announcements to take note of:
ADVISORY – Extended hours for overseas voting registration, before the September 30, 2024 deadline: The Philippine Consulate General in San Francisco informs the public that it will extend its office hours during the final week of the 22-month-long overseas voting registration for the 2025 Philippine national elections, which ends worldwide on September 30, 2024. On Sept. 23-27 and Sept. 30, 2024, the overseas voting registration at the Consulate will run from 9:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. A prior appointment is not needed to register as an overseas voter. https://pcgsanfrancisco.org/overseas-voting
ADVISORY for overseas voters who had voted in the 2022 Philippine elections, who need to update their address, correct a misspelled name, or transfer their voting records between different international destinations, among others: Registered Overseas Voters with an active or deactivated record and with complete biometric data may avail of the OFOV’s Virtual Frontline Services (VFS), until September 30, 2024. Contact the Office for Overseas Voting at ov.concerns@comelec.gov.ph or m.me/overseasvotingph at Facebook messenger. See fb.com/overseasvotingph for more information on Facebook.
ADVISORY to all Filipino citizens of voting age who will be abroad/overseas during the 2025 National Elections: You can file your application for registration as overseas voters (OV) during the OV registration period, which ends on September 30, 2024.
For registration/certification application FAQs, I created a shortened link to the Comelec’s website, https://tinyurl.com/phoverseasvotersfaq.
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This Filipino community events announcement column is a community service project spearheaded by me.
DISCLAIMER: This is my content curation of events, aka my choices, which are organized by community-based organizations in the San Francisco Bay Area and community events that benefit our diverse communities. If you have questions about an event, click on the RSVP link or find the contact person or organizers mentioned in the announcement. There are some events included in this column that I help promote or organize.
