What Happens if Automated Elections Totally Fail?

By Rico, 1:01 pm Wed Apr 15 2009 - Editorial - What Do You Think?

So let’s say that the 2010 elections fails because something went wrong with the automated system. So no President or Vice-President have been elected.

According to the Constitution, Article VII, Section 7:

Where no President and Vice-President shall have been chosen or shall have qualified, or where both shall have died or become permanently disabled, the President of the Senate or, in case of his inability, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, shall act as President until a President or a Vice-President shall have been chosen and qualified.

But, the terms of both the President of the Senate (Enrile) and the Speaker (Nograles) also end on June 30, 2010, the same date as the current incumbents. So who becomes President then? Here’s what the next paragraph says:

The Congress shall, by law, provide for the manner in which one who is to act as President shall be selected until a President or a Vice-President shall have qualified, in case of death, permanent disability, or inability of the officials mentioned in the next preceding paragraph.

A to-do item for the Congress becomes clear then: they have to make a law ASAP that dictates who becomes acting President in case the 2010 elections fail, and no new President and VP are chosen. For any kind of technology, it always makes sense to create contingencies for any failure. You never know when Murphy’s Law will strike, especially when there are people out there who would want to see it happen.

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