Migrante International has expressed concern over reports from Filipino migrants worldwide regarding malfunctions and difficulties in online voting for the 2025 elections. The group received reports of failed attempts to “pre-enroll” and other frustrating experiences with online voting.

The group stated that many Filipinos were insufficiently informed about the overseas voting process. Many voters were reportedly not informed that the system has shifted to an online voting system (OVS) from the previous automated voting system.

“Some still think they can vote in person,” Migrante said. They are unaware that pre-enrollment is required, and failure to do so will prevent them from voting online even if they are on the list of eligible overseas voters.

Additionally, Migrante International complained that Filipino migrants have no way to verify whether their votes are correctly recorded and counted. “Unlike in past elections, where machines will print a receipt of the votes casted, our compatriots cannot receive any receipts after voting in the OVS,” the group stated.

Filipino migrants are now alarmed that these anomalous processes open a potential for election fraud.

Meanwhile, Philippine embassies and consulates worldwide refuse to disclose how many have pre-enrolled or actually voted since April 13. “This is a departure from the usual practice of announcing the daily tally of voters’ turnout,” Migrante International added.

The group emphasized the clear lack of transparency in this new system, which further erodes Filipinos’ trust in the 2025 midterm elections.

Migrante International called on the Commission on Elections (Comelec) to immediately address the mounting issues faced by Filipino migrants. “We call on Comelec to return to manual voting processes at home and overseas,” it said.

They warned that the persisting flawed system could disenfranchise over one million Filipino migrants. “The Marcos government is solely to blame for this,” the group declared.

The Computer Professionals’ Union (CPU) and Kontra Daya have also raised concerns about the OVS with its failures and anomalies.