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In a decision made by the Court of First Instance following a request from New Progressive Party (NPP) Electoral Commissioner Aníbal Vega Borges, it has been confirmed that voters possess the right to choose the location for receiving their ballots when they apply for early or absentee voting.
Judge Raúl A. Candelario López, in his ruling, stated that after reviewing the relevant facts and legal framework, including the Absentee and Early Voting Regulations for the 2024 Primary and General Elections, it is the responsibility of the voter—not the State Elections Commission (SEC)—to “… select the postal address to which he wishes the ballots to be sent. Indeed, any other interpretation would contradict the clear directives outlined in the Electoral Code and its associated regulations.”
Additionally, the judge highlighted that Section 4.4 of the 2024 Primary and 2024 General Election Absentee and Early Voting Regulations explicitly indicates that “… the paper form to request early voting must include, among other components, the ‘mailing address where I would receive my ballot by mail.’” This clause, together with Section 9.35 of the Election Code, mandates that the absentee voting request form must include, among other information, “the complete mailing address of the location where you would receive your ballots by mail if you selected this method for your Absentee Vote” (16 LPRA sec. 4735).
The judge also mentioned Article 9.38 of the Electoral Code, which similarly stipulates that the request form for early voting must encompass, among other particulars, “the complete postal address of the location where you would receive your ballots by mail if this was the method chosen for your Early Vote” (16 LPRA sec. 4738).
The legal reasoning articulated by Candelario López backs the NPP’s stance regarding voter rights. Acknowledging that a detailed examination of the issues presented was unnecessary, the court proceeded to dismiss the appeal for review filed, while also outlining the legal principles governing the handling of absentee and early voting applications by the SEC in the 2024 general elections.
Referencing the arguments in the judicial ruling, Alternate SEC Chairwoman Jéssika Padilla Rivera, in her revised resolution, pointed out that “… the postal address solely determines where the correspondence will be delivered to a designated recipient” and that “the postal address listed in a request is simply that, a postal address.” Moreover, the SEC official emphasized that it is the SEC’s responsibility to ensure the secure and unmistakable delivery of ballots to voters via their postal mail. Consequently, section 4 of the amended resolution clarified that the Permanent Registration Board/Temporary Registration Boards (JIP/JIT) officer is authorized only to correct minor grammatical and/or numerical mistakes in the postal address provided by the voter in their application for early or absentee voting, but cannot modify their voting address.
“The aforementioned does not infringe upon the voter’s right to choose the postal address to which they wish for their ballots to be sent,” the judge affirmed.
