Comelec starts random manual audit of Eleksyon 2025

The Commission on Elections (Comelec) officially started the random manual audit (RMA) of ballots from over 700 randomly selected clustered precincts and one online voting post for Eleksyon 2025 on Wednesday.

At least 60 auditing teams from the Department of Education (DepEd) would check the performance of the automated counting machines (ACMs) and examine the ballots from 726  randomly-selected clustered precincts to validate their accuracy during the law-mandated RMA. The teams comprised teachers who did not serve as electoral board members for the May 12 elections.

“Importante to kasi malalaman nila na ang kanilang balot na binasa ng makina, tinitingnan din ng tao para ma-verify na tama naman pala ang bilang ng machines,” said PPCRV Trustee Tammy Lipana.

(This is important because the public would be assured their votes were read by the machines and validated by humans.)

“Ma-assure ang public na ang machines na ginamit, accurate naman pala ang bilang dahil naprove sa manual counting na tama ang bilang ng machines,” she said.

(They will be assured the machines were accurate.)

The Comelec earlier said the RMA is conducted after every election as a measure to maintain the integrity and transparency of the polls. It was held at the Citadines Bay City Hotel in Pasay and is slated to last up to 45 days.

Section 29 of the Automated Election System (AES) Act states that “there shall be a random manual audit in one precinct per congressional district randomly chosen by the Commission in each province and city” where the automated election system is used.

Poll chief George Erwin Garcia said the RMA maintained a 99.9% accuracy rate since the 2010 automated elections. –NB, GMA Integrated News

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