Voter registration period likely to be extended — Comelec

Comelec spokesperson James Jimenez. INQUIRER.net file photo

MANILA, Philippines — The proposal to extend the voter registration period may likely be granted, Commission on Election (Comelec) spokesperson James Jimenez said on Tuesday.

“After consultation with Comelec officials, and in consideration of the public clamor, it is likely that an extension of the period of voter registration will be granted,” Jimenez told reporters in a Viber message.

The Comelec’s management committee earlier met and came up with the recommendation to the en banc.

This recommendation will be tackled by the en banc on September 29, according to Jimenez.

The current September 30 deadline of voter registration will stay unless the en banc decides otherwise.

Previously, Comelec did not want to extend voter registration due to the challenges it will create with the election timeline.

Voter registration in areas under enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) and modified ECQ was suspended, which left voters in said areas unable to register.

Comelec later allowed voting under modified GCQ areas on September 1. It also extended the voter registration hours and opened their offices on Saturday and holidays to make up for the lost time.

However, several groups and organizations, even lawmakers, appealed for the extension of voter registration, pointing out the said measures are not enough.

Both the Senate and the House of Representatives have already approved separate measures extending the deadline for another month or until October 31.

To date, more than 62 million voters are eligible to vote for the upcoming 2022 elections, according to Comelec.

The present number of voters already exceeded the total number of voters in the 2019 elections, which was at 61,843,771.

JPV