Ban on sample ballots sought

CEBU CITY – Bagumbayan standard-bearer Sen. Richard Gordon has appealed to the Commission on Elections (Comelec) to ban candidates from distributing sample ballots because these can be used in vote buying.

“Sample ballots should not be allowed. I am calling on the Comelec not to allow these sample ballots. The Comelec should issue a resolution stopping candidates from distributing sample ballots,” he said.

Gordon campaigned in Cebu City over the weekend and held a public consultation in the town of Barili.

He said the sample ballots can be used as “templates” and “receipts” in vote buying operations.

“Sample ballots could have cut ovals and voters will just put these on top of the official ballot and shade them. Voters can then later show these as proof that they had voted for some candidates,” he said.

Gordon also said candidates will incur additional expenses in printing sample ballots because they would need to print at least four per voter at the cost of 10 centavos each.

He also said the distribution of sample ballots undermines the intelligence of voters because they can bring their own list of candidates. The Comelec may also post the names of candidates in the voting precincts to guide voters.

He is also worried that sample ballots can be used to sabotage the precinct count optical scan (PCOS) machines, forcing the Comelec to conduct a manual count, increasing the possibility of election fraud.

Gordon has also appealed to the Comelec to limit each candidate to a single poll watcher.

He said there is no need to assign so many poll watchers because elections are now automated. The presence of multiple poll watchers may also be a sign of vote buying.