2025 elections: How do the new vote-counting machines work

The Commission on Elections (Comelec) unveiled new ACMs from a South Korean firm for the 2025 midterm elections, replacing the aging Smartmatic machines. | COMELEC/Facebook

CEBU CITY, Philippines – The Commission on Elections (COMELEC) introduced a new automated vote-counting machine for the 2025 midterm elections.

The Miru automated counting machines (ACMs), developed by the South Korean firm Miru Systems, aim to deliver faster, more transparent, and secure ballot processing.

Lawyer Francisco Pobe, the regional director of Comelec Central Visayas, shared key features of the new vote-counting machines during a news media forum on Tuesday, December 17.

Hybrid voting system

The Miru ACMs feature a hybrid voting system that combines automated ballot counting with manual verification. While the machines will streamline the process, election boards and watchers can still manually monitor votes for accuracy to ensure a transparent and verifiable system.

The machines can process ballots at a rate of 220 millimeters per second, more than three times faster than the older Smartmatic machines, which operate at 70 millimeters per second. This upgrade not only improves efficiency but also reduces voters’ waiting times.

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Thinner ballot paper

Another improvement is the use of thinner ballot paper. The ballots for the 2025 elections will be 90 grams per square meter (GSM), compared to the 162 GSM used in the 2022 elections.

Despite being lighter, the ballots are designed to prevent ink from bleeding through, ensuring clear and accurate ballot markings.

Summary of selected candidates on a screen

After feeding their ballots into the machine, voters will see a summary of their selected candidates displayed on a screen. This feature allows voters to verify their choices, and in case of undervotes, they have the option to reclaim and correct their ballots before final submission.

QR codes on voter receipts

The Miru machines also enhance transparency through the use of QR codes on voter receipts. These QR codes can be scanned using the machines’ built-in camera scanners, allowing election workers to verify results and ensure they match the physical ballots.

However, to maintain the integrity of the voting process, voters are prohibited from taking photos of their QR codes.

Built-in ballot box

Additionally, the 2025 election machines come with a built-in ballot box and a secure storage compartment for receipts, ensuring all materials are safely kept throughout the voting process.

For overseas voting, the Miru ACMs include a touch-screen interface, allowing voters to cast their ballots digitally. However, this feature will only be available in select countries due to logistical challenges in domestic precincts, where large voter turnout could lead to delays.

Locally, the machines rely on optical mark recognition (OMR) technology to read physical ballots.

One of the standout features of the Miru ACMs is their simultaneous result transmission capability. Unlike previous systems, results will no longer pass through a centralized transparency server.

Instead, the 2025 election results will be transmitted directly to key stakeholders, including majority and minority parties, citizen groups, Congress, the media, and COMELEC’s central server. This simultaneous transmission ensures that all parties receive the same data in real-time, reducing concerns over potential manipulation or delays.

To further secure the election process, the Miru machines generate physical copies of votes in the form of ballot images and printed receipts before transmitting digital results. This physical backup ensures that in the event of a digital breach, the physical records remain available for verification.

The machines also feature a large 12-inch screen that displays scanned images of ballots, allowing voters, election boards, and observers to visually confirm the accuracy of the votes.

The transition to Miru Systems comes after the disqualification of Smartmatic, the country’s previous supplier of vote-counting machines, in 2023. Smartmatic faced allegations of bribery and procurement irregularities, leading COMELEC to initiate a new bidding process.

Miru Systems, a South Korean firm specializing in electronic voting technology, secured the contract with a P17.99 billion deal for the lease of 110,000 machines. Each unit costs P149,000, slightly cheaper than Smartmatic’s machines, which were priced at P155,000 per unit.

Meanwhile, Pobe said that community demonstrations are already ongoing and will continue to be scheduled. He added that barangays can also request the Comelec for further demonstrations of the new 2025 election machines for free.