Comelec holds mock elections in 34 barangays

The Commission on Elections (Comelec) on Wednesday morning started the conduct of mock elections in 34 barangays nationwide.

Comelec spokesperson James Jimenez said at 6 a.m. on GMA's Unang Balita that the poll body was ready for the day's mock elections, with ballots and vote counting machines (VCMs) already delivered to designated polling places.

"Ang maximum voters per precinct ay 800. May mga lugar na as low as 500 plus. Average is 600 to 700 [voters per precinct]," Jimenez said on Unang Balita.

The mock elections will be held from 7 a.m. to 12 noon, but other precincts will end the mock polls at 5 p.m.

Jimenez said there will be "checkpoints" before voters can cast their vote.

"May checkpoint sa simula, may voter assistance desk. Hindi basta-basta makakapasok sa polling place," he said.

With the mock elections, the Comelec will be able to see how many minutes it would take for voters to cast their ballots and find out if the processes laid out work, Jimenez said.

However, the Comelec is not expecting a high turnout of voters on Wednesday for the mock elections because historically, Filipinos are not excited if it is not a true election, he said at a press briefing at the P. Zamora Elementary School in Pasay City, one of the designated polling places for the mock polls, according to a tweet by GMA News reporter Tina Panganiban-Perez.

"The exercise today is meant to see bottlenecks," Jimenez said.

At P. Zamora Elementary School, an emergency accessible polling place (EAPP) has been set up for senior citizens, persons with disability, and heavily pregnant women.

Participants in the mock elections would have to undergo body temperature checking and submit health declaration forms.

At the Pasay City West High School, voters with normal body temperature and no symptoms will be led to a covered court serving as waiting area before they proceed to the polling precinct, according to a report by James Jimenez on Unang Balita.

Those with symptoms however will be led to an isolation polling place.

The same setup was also in place at the Ususan Elementary School in Taguig City, according to a report by Bam Alegre on Unang Balita.

Those with body temperature of 37.5 degrees Celsius and above will be led to an isolation polling place where they will be observed. Some voters may manifest a higher body temperature due to the weather, for instance.

Voters passing health and safety protocols will be allowed to enter the classrooms serving as voting precincts. Only 10 voters will be allowed at a time.

The voters will then be given a ballot and a ballot secrecy folder. They will be the ones to put the ballot into the VCM, which will print out a receipt. 

The Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases approved on December 10 the conduct of nationwide mock elections on December 29.

Acting presidential spokesperson Karlo Nograles said that holding the national mock polls was allowed “to ensure the safe and effective conduct” of Eleksyon 2022.

The Comelec earlier ran a voting simulation in San Juan City on October 23. —KG, GMA News