3 in 5 Pinoys eligible to vote – poll

MANILA, Philippines - Only three in five Filipino adults are eligible to vote in the May 2016 general elections, the Social Weather Stations (SWS) said in its latest survey.

The SWS poll, fielded from Nov. 27 to Dec. 1 last year, showed that only 63 percent or 37.4 million Filipinos were “validated” to vote in the May 2016 elections.

Only validated voters will be allowed to vote in next year’s polls, the Commission on Elections (Comelec) said.

A validated voter has registered and has had his or her biometrics, including photograph, fingerprint and signature taken by the Comelec.

The survey showed that 30 percent of adult Filipinos, or about 17.8 million, were registered but not validated as of December 2014.

According to the poll body, there are 49.7 million registered voters and those without biometrics have until October 31 for validation or they lose the chance of voting in next year’s elections.

The highest number of validated voters was recorded in Mindanao at 69 percent (9.4 million); followed by the Visayas at 64 percent (7.4 million); balance Luzon, 63 percent (16.6 million), and Metro Manila, 50 percent (4.1 million).

The proportion of registered but unvalidated voters was highest in Metro Manila at 39 percent (3.3 million); followed by balance Luzon at 31 percent (8.3 million); the Visayas, 29 percent (3.3 million); and Mindanao with 22 percent (3 million).

The number of unregistered voters was highest in Metro Manila at 11 percent (estimated at some 920,000); followed by Mindanao with nine percent (1.2 million); the Visayas, seven percent (850,000), and balance Luzon, six percent (1.6 million).