The Commission on Elections (Comelec) is “back to zero” in its preparations for the upcoming national and local elections after it suspended the printing of 73 million ballots. This came after the Supreme Court (SC) issued a temporary restraining order (TRO) on Comelec’s disqualification of certain candidates, including former lawmaker Edgar Erice.

One of the major consequences of the delay is the financial loss incurred after six million ballots had already been printed without the names of the candidates on them. These ballots, now rendered invalid, resulted in an estimated loss of P150 million.

Comelec Chairperson George Garcia said they would need to start the printing process all over again.

“Therefore, we’re back to zero when it comes to printing the ballots,” Garcia said, emphasizing the financial impact of having to discard the already printed six million ballots. “Of course, we will also adjust the candidates’ numbers because we will insert their names.”

The printing of the 73 million ballots had begun on 6 January.

Garcia said they could not determine when printing would resume, but assured that the elections scheduled for 12 May would proceed as planned.

“The Comelec is in control of the situation,” he emphasized.

In addition to the ballot printing issue, the Comelec is also facing challenges with its database, the Election Management System, and the automated counting machines as adjustments would have to be made to reflect the new list of candidates.

Garcia also announced that the mock elections, originally set for Saturday, 18 January, will be rescheduled to 25 January.

He expressed the hope that by then, the Comelec would have completed the necessary changes, including modifications to over 1,000 ballot faces across the country.

The situation highlighted the logistical and financial challenges the Comelec is facing.

Despite the hurdles, Garcia assured the public the Comelec remained committed to ensuring the elections would take place on time.