Comelec preparing for BARMM polls

MANILA, Philippines — With the 2025 midterm elections over, the Commission on Elections (Comelec) is now preparing for the first parliamentary polls in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM), which will be conducted in October. 

In preparing for the BARMM elections, Comelec Chairman George Garcia said that poll officials would consider the lessons learned in the conduct of the May 12 elections. 

“Issues in the last elections gave us an opportunity to adjust our preparations. We’ll consider these lessons to avoid committing the same mistakes in the Bangsamoro elections,” Garcia said.

He said up to 7,000 automated counting machines (ACMs) would be used for the BARMM elections.

“We want to have contingency machines on standby in every polling precinct. We are eyeing a 1:1-ratio for ACMs,” Garcia said.

Printing of ballots for the BARMM elections will be from July to August, he said.

The Comelec is also preparing to resume voter registration in July or August.

Garcia said the voter registration would be conducted for a short period only because the barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan elections (BSKE) would be held in December.

“We can’t have a longer period (for the voter registration) because we still have to conduct hearings for the election registration board. Our time to prepare for the BSKE is limited,” Garcia said.

The law prohibits the holding of voter registration within 120 days before the conduct of regular elections, and 90 days for special elections.

Garcia said the poll body has yet to decide whether to hold a voter registration in the Bangsamoro region.

“We do not want to create confusion for (new) BARMM voters. They might think that they will be able to cast their votes during the parliamentary elections,” he said.

Garcia said BARMM residents who voted in the May 12 elections would be the same ones who would cast their ballots in the Bangsamoro parliamentary elections. He said the BARMM vote is  just a continuation of the May 12 polls.

The Bangsamoro election was supposed to be conducted simultaneously with the May 12 polls,  but it was moved to October after the Supreme Court ruled that Sulu is not part of the BARMM.