The Commission on Elections (Comelec) will no longer require voters to be vaccinated before voting in Election 2022

The Commission on Elections said Filipinos do not need to show proof of COVID-19 vaccination or negative RT-PCR test results to cast their votes.

"We're not going to require [vaccination] cards, RT-PCR test results," Comelec director and spokesperson James Jimenez said. This is amid the fear that many Filipinos will still not be vaccinated next year or those who do not want to be vaccinated.

Jimenez also said every voting center will have a health screening. Comelec will also cooperate with the Inter-Agency Task Force for contact tracing, he added.

According to Comelec Spokesperson James Jimenez, even demanding a negative result of COVID-19 is no longer mandatory for voters. But during the canvassing of votes, the Commission on Elections (Comelec) will strictly implement health and safety protocols against COVID-19 in vote canvassing venues for the 2022 elections.

In the guidelines released on Tuesday, the poll body mandated the Board of Canvassers to ensure that all persons inside vote canvassing venues are fully vaccinated. If unvaccinated or partially vaccinated, the personnel must present a negative antigen or swab test result.

So far, the Comelec has laid down health and safety protocols to prevent the voting process from becoming a superspreader event.