History is about to be made for Philippine overseas absentee voting in about 30 countries.

Philippine Consul General Senen Mangalile told ABS-CBN News that the mode of voting in national and local Philippine elections on May 12, 2025, will be solely online voting via the internet.

The Philippine consulate general in New York is excited to assist the Commission on Elections in rolling out this manner of voting.

Registration for overseas voting ended in September. Only those overseas Filipinos who are registered to vote will receive a link to access the 2025 online voting platform specially created for the Commission of Elections, where voters all over the world can virtually participate in the coming Philippine midterm elections.

Mangalile is hoping that the 2025 voter turnout will be higher than the May 2022 midterm elections at 38.65%. 

"It’s much easier to participate and register as overseas absentee voters in the election because they don’t have to wait for the ballots," he said in Filipino. "They don’t have to mail the ballots and wait for it to be counted using the machine. That’s the Number One aim."

Rutgers University law professor Rose Cuison-Villazor said she is okay with the new technology so long as Comelec can assure voters that the mode of voting is secured, hack-proof, and that measures against fraud are in place. 

"One general worry is that online voting might be susceptible to being manipulated by outside forces," she said. "On the other hand, one can argue that online voting also ensures greater access to the right to vote."

"The question comes down to: Is a person comfortable enough voting using their computer or their phones? Are there enough guardrails to make sure that their vote will not be compromised?" 

Citing Comelec, Mangalile said there will be a pre-enrollment period and 75 days of online voting before it closes at the end of the Philippine Election Day.

The consul general also reassured members of the community that redundancies are going to be avoided and that there are safety and security measures in place similar to online banking transactions. 

But not everyone is sold on this idea, since a number of countries and states that have adopted this technology in the past found security failures and verification flaws. 

New York University history professor Adrian de Leon said the "entire thing is a big red flag." 

"Historically and contemporarily, Filipino elections have always been marked by scandal, corruption, and accusations of illegitimacy," he asserted.

De Leon said that before jumping the gun and going completely online, there are issues that need to be addressed. 

"There’s already little trust in paper votes because once they’re received, sometimes they go to people who don't necessarily count them well. Even more so with online voting," he said. "The anxieties around this is really a sign of a long-eroded trust in the Philippine state, and that is at the core of how we talk about a democratic process."

With only a little more than 200 days to go before the Philippine national and local elections, critics said Comelec needs to be very transparent with the details of this new mode of online voting, or what others refer to as electronic ballot return. 

Mangalile invited Comelec officials to visit the East Coast and meet with the Filipino community so they can share what internet voting or online voting means and how it will be implemented. 

Consulates will send out a link where registered overseas absentee voters can pre-enroll until a certain point before Election Day, and those who pre-enroll will receive a secured link to cast their vote online.