Random manual audit begins 2 days after polls—Comelec
Metro Manila, Philippines - The Commission on Elections (Comelec) is set to kick off a random manual audit of votes from 762 precincts across the country and one online voting from overseas starting May 14, just two days after the midterm elections.
The audit will take place at Citadines Bay City Manila in Pasay, with the Comelec eyeing to wrap it up in about 45 days.
Random Manual Auditing (RMA) is a post-election check to verify the accuracy of automated results by manually counting ballots and comparing them to machine tallies.
On Monday, May 12, Comelec held an electronic raffle at the Manila Hotel’s Tent City to randomly select the participating precincts and the overseas post.
According to Resolution 11089, the number of precincts to be audited in each legislative district will depend on how many clustered precincts it has, in proportion to the rest of the country.
Votes for senators, party-lists, district representatives and mayors will be audited in midterm polls.
The audit is a requirement under Republic Act 9369, which mandates that at least one precinct per congressional district be manually reviewed.
Should inconsistencies arise between manual and automated results, Comelec will investigate further and may order a full manual recount in affected areas.
The poll body said it remains confident in the process, noting that past RMAs have shown a 99.9-percent match with automated results since the country began using vote-counting machines in 2010.
The RMA committee, composed of Comelec staff, civil society groups, the Philippine Statistics Authority and the Department of Education, was officially launched on April 21.
