The Commission on Elections (Comelec) resumed yesterday the printing of 73 million official ballots for the 2025 midterm elections after several delays caused by temporary restraining orders issued by the Supreme Court following petitions filed by candidates disqualified by the poll body.
Among the last-minute additions to the official ballot was the name of Marikina Mayor Marcy Teodoro, a candidate for congressman of the city’s 1st District, poll chairman George Garcia said.
Teodoro was among the candidates disqualified by the Comelec but was able to secure temporary restraining orders (TROs) from the Supreme Court (SC).
Garcia clarified that the names of other candidates with pending motions and disqualifications would also be retained on the ballot.
“Not only Teodoro; but several others with pending motions, pending disqualification, unless there’s a decision from the commission en banc,” Garcia said during a press conference at the National Printing Office (NPO).
Garcia expressed confidence in meeting the Comelec’s April 14 deadline.
Garcia noted the ballot printing has been delayed thrice, but assured that these stoppages would not affect the holding of the midterm elections scheduled on May 12.
It can be recalled that the ballot printing process started on Jan. 6 but temporarily stopped on Jan. 14, and deferred anew on Jan. 23 after the SC issued TROs allowing at least nine candidates to run for various positions in the coming polls.
Garcia said Comelec needs to churn out 1.5 million official ballots daily to meet the target date of completion.
“With a combined daily target output of 1.5 million ballots, the printing committee anticipates completing the printing process in 48 days, excluding verification and reprinting phases,” he explained.
“Our original timeline is April 14, and we should still be finished by April 14. In case we have to make an adjustment, we will think about it later. But in the meantime, we must and at all costs, finish printing by April 14,” Garcia added.
Ballots for overseas voting, local absentee voting, midterms, and parliamentary elections for the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao and Cagayan Valley will be printed first.
Ballots for Calabarzon, Central Luzon, and the National Capital Region will be printed last.
Editor’s Note: This is an updated article. Originally posted with the headline “Comelec resumes ballot printing to meet April 14 deadline.”