Technology glitch hits Philippine election

Problems with vote-counting machines hit the Philippines election today as up to 50 million Filipinos — hoping to put a decade of corrupt politics behind them — tried to vote.

Optical scanning machines were being used but humidity affected some. Benigno Aquino III, whose father was assassinated and whose mother led the "people power" revolt that restored freedoms, had a large lead.

"This is a new system of voting. We have a longer ballot, so I hope all the people can vote and not be delayed and I hope there will be no long lines of people outside when the voting ends," said Mr Aquino while waiting to cast his vote as a machine was fixed.

Election commissioner Gregorio Larrazabal said about 300 out of 76,000 machines had problems. The elections commission extended voting for another hour to make up for delays.

A former election commission chairman, Christian Monsod, said the long lines of voters represent "a celebration of democracy."

"I was with the Indonesian delegation yesterday and they are here to learn from us because they are also going to automate. I told them you just watch, you watch how our people in elections are going to be disciplined," he said.

More than 30 people have been killed in election campaign violence over the past three months. At least five were killed and six wounded today as troops and gunmen exchanged fire in southern Maguindanao province, where 57 people were massacred last year.