MANILA – The Commission on Elections said special elections are set to be conducted at a town in Isabela after armed men intentionally burned the vote counting machine last week.
Comelec spokesman James Jimenez on Saturday said the special elections will be held at Barangay Dicamay 1, Jones, Isabela today.
“Special elections will be conducted on 20 May 2019, in Barangay Dicamay 1, Jones, Isabela, as a consequence of the intentional burning of VCMs in that area, on election day,” Jimenez said.
He added the Comelec en banc issued a resolution for the conduct of the special elections and the designation of a special election board.
Election officers said on Tuesday, the vote counting machine was being delivered to the municipal hall aboard a dump truck when it was attacked by two armed men at about 6 a.m.
The police arrested two suspects identified as Jayson Leano and Rodel Pascual.
The Comelec en banc issued a separate resolution which ordered the municipal board of canvassers to lower the threshold of votes for the national positions in the areas of Barangay Dicamay 1 in Jones, Isabela and Barangay Lumbayao in San Pablo, Zamboanga del Sur. /PN
