Exceeding (Low) Expectations: Autonomy, Bureaucratic Integrity, and Capacity in the 2010 Elections

Abstract

Building quality democracy takes time. It requires a constant review of the performance of institutions that are tasked to deliver in concrete ways the democratic ideal. Improving democratic institutions requires sustained reform efforts. Election administration and election commissions need to be examined against this backdrop of broader democratization issues. Given the importance of election administration in the study of democratic processes, there are very few studies that focus on election administration. By focusing on a specific institution tasked to replicate the ideals of democracy such as the COMELEC, this study offers insights into a deeper understanding of autonomy, bureaucratic integrity and capacity. Though mostly overlooked, election administration plays a vital role in the study of broader democratization questions. Elections promise continuity and stability. But if election administration is done poorly due to the lack of autonomy, integrity, and capacity then it becomes an unsettling and destabilizing exercise. With democratic structures in place for years, the Philippines continues to have problems with the most basic elements of election administration: accuracy in maintaining voter lists, counting votes and adjudicating disputes. The COMELEC oversees election administration, serving as referee and gatekeeper in the Philippines’ electoral arena. The COMELEC is a constitutional commission with ostensible autonomy and power, yet it is also a bureaucracy. The May 2010 election was the first automated election in the Philippines. Widely regarded as a success, there were many issues and incidents that show it was also business as usual for COMELEC. The speed of the canvass count astounded the voting populace, and perhaps operators, but the May 2010 election continues to show embedded problems within the commission that needs to be addressed in order to strengthen the COMELEC as an institution that can provide election administration efficiently and accurately in subsequent elections.