Canberra - Consul Corina A. Reyes, Chair of the Special Ballot Reception and Custody Group (SBRCG) turns over the election paraphernalia to Consul General Jim Tito San Agustin, Chair of the Special Board of Election Inspectors (SBEI) to mark the first day of Overseas Voting in Australia. The voting period is from 13 April 2019 to 13 May 2019.

On Tuesday, 9 April 2019, the Philippine Embassy in Canberra concluded the Final Testing and Sealing (FTS) of the Embassy’s Vote Counting Machine (VCM).

The Final Testing and Sealing, which was witnessed by members of the press and the Filipino Community, involved testing the machine’s performance as a final check before the start of actual elections on 13 April.

During the Final Testing and Sealing, H.E. Ma. Hellen B. De La Vega, Philippine Ambassador to Australia and Chair of the Special Board of Canvassers, exhorted the Filipino Community in Australia, Vanuatu and Nauru to exercise their right of suffrage. She also reminded voters to shade the ballot properly and avoid voting more than the allowed number of candidates to ensure that their votes are counted properly. END