The National Electoral Directorate asked for "patience" before the debut of the Single Paper Ballot.

The National Electoral Directorate (DINE) asked voters across the country for patience as they begin their first experience with the Single Paper Ballot (BUP), which will be used in the 2025 legislative elections. The head of the agency, María Luz Landívar , led the national data transmission simulation from the Argentine Post Office headquarters in Barracas and explained the main challenges of the new system.
“It's an election with a new system. The polling station officials will do an incredible job, but they need patience because it's something they've never done before, ” Landívar warned. During the test run, 13,000 people participated, and 108,000 telegrams were transmitted, 80% of which were processed within three hours. “The system responded very well ,” the official assured.

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What the voting process will be likeThe official explained that voters will have to go through the polling station twice in districts where national and provincial elections are held simultaneously. There, voters will use two different ballot boxes:
One for the Single Paper Ballot , where you'll mark your choice behind the screen. Another with the traditional party ballot , in the voting booth.
The provinces that will implement this method are Catamarca , La Rioja , Mendoza , and Santiago del Estero (the latter also elects governors). "In these provinces, we need the most patience because the polling station officials have to do double duty , not only during election day, but also at the end: they'll have to open two ballot boxes, complete two telegrams, two tally sheets, and only when everything is complete can they be transmitted," Landivar explained.

On the other hand, Landívar reported that in these elections they have 14,370 establishments with connectivity and compared it with the 2023 elections , where there were 10,400: "We've made a lot of progress," he added. He also noted that they have 953 mail support centers "available for any eventuality."
The head of the DINE (National Institute of Statistics and Census) referred to the telegram transmission and digitization process and assured that she does not expect any additional problems. "It's a very solid system, one that Argentines, prosecutors, and political parties already know and are familiar with; there won't be many differences," she added.
She also referred to the funds raised by some organizations that bring together blind and visually impaired people to purchase and use templates that allow them to vote independently and respect the secret ballot. Landívar stated that, for now, her right to assisted voting remains in place, which requires being accompanied by a trusted person or asking the polling station official to accompany her.
“In some districts, a hard plastic template is being tested, and some NGOs are also doing it in agreement with the districts and federal judges. They use it to cut out the boxes where the vote must be marked, and they'll probably also make a mark above it so they know what the group number is. That way, if they want to vote for the group in position 5, they touch the cutout box and mark it in position 5. This is happening as a pilot test, but it's not a nationwide initiative . Hopefully, it will work well and we can implement it in 2027 , but for now, the law doesn't provide for it,” he explained.
Regarding the pens and the misinformation circulating, the head of the DINE explained that they recommend relying on the officially provided electoral materials , as they are designed for that purpose and purchased by the Executive Branch. She also noted that the Judiciary is aware of and supervises this material, as it is responsible for its preparation.
"If the voter wants to bring their own pen, they can do so, but the ones the polling station presidents will provide are ordinary black pens with the inscription 'Argentine Elections,'" he clarified.
The official sought to dispel the false claims: “There's nothing unusual about them. They don't bleed through when writing on the ballot. There are some rolls circulating that claim they can be erased with heat or the back of a pen, but they don't. You can bring your own if you prefer , although we ask that you trust the electoral materials prepared for this purpose.”
Finally, he announced that, as usual, the first official partial results are expected after 9 p.m. , although there are still "some issues to be resolved."
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