15M Filipinos may not vote, survey shows

Some 9.7 million voters face disenfranchisement in next year’s elections for failure to have their biometrics taken, while 4.7 million have not registered to vote as of June, results of a Social Weather Stations (SWS) survey showed.

The SWS survey on voter validation, conducted from June 5 to 8, found that 76 percent, or about 46.6 million registered voters, had accomplished the biometrics requirements—digital photograph, signature and fingerprints for their voter registration records.

The latest percentage of voters with their biometrics taken barely changed from the 75 percent recorded in March, but was higher than the 63 percent in December last year.

The survey also found that 16 percent, or an estimated 9.7 million registered voters, had yet to have their biometrics taken. This was unchanged from 17 percent in March, but lower than the 30 percent recorded last December.

The Commission on Elections, however, put the number of voters without biometrics at less than 4 million.

Voter validation is a requirement under Republic Act No. 10367, or the Mandatory Biometrics Voter Registration Act of 2013, which provides that voters who fail to submit for validation prior to the May 2016 elections shall be deactivated from the voter list and shall not be allowed to vote.

Under Comelec Resolution No. 9853, voters have until Oct. 31, 2015, to register and validate their biometrics data, which is aimed at cleaning up the computerized voters’ list using a unique multiple fingerprint system. The biometrics information will then generate a voter’s ID and set up a database that will identify the voter in future elections.

The percentage of unregistered voters remained at 8 percent, or

4.7 million individuals, SWS said.

By area, 62 percent of voters in Metro Manila, 76 percent in Luzon outside Metro Manila, 78 percent in the Visayas and 84 percent in Mindanao were registered and validated to vote.

The percentage of registered voters not validated to vote was 27 percent in Metro Manila, 16 percent in Luzon outside Metro Manila, 17 percent in the Visayas and 7 percent in Mindanao.

Eleven percent in Metro Manila, 8 percent in Luzon, 5 percent in the Visayas and 8 percent in Mindanao have not registered to vote.

In rural areas, 82 percent were registered and validated to vote, while 11 percent were registered but not validated to vote and 7 percent were unregistered.

In urban areas, 71 percent had complied with the biometrics requirements, while 20 percent were without biometrics data and 8 percent were unregistered.

Among socioeconomic classes, Class E had the highest percentage of registered and validated voters with 81 percent, followed by 76 percent in Class D, and 71 percent in Classes ABC.

Among Classes ABC, 20 percent were registered but not validated, while 17 percent in Class D, and 9 percent in Class E were without biometrics.

The proportion of unregistered voters was 9 percent in Classes ABC, 7 percent in Class D, and 9 percent in Class E.

By sex, 75 percent were registered and validated to vote among men, while 16 percent were registered but not validated to vote, and 8 percent were unregistered. Among women, 77 percent were registered and validated to vote, 15 percent were registered but without biometrics, and

7 percent were unregistered.

By age, respondents aged 35 to 44 (82 percent) logged the highest number of registered and validated voters, followed by 81 percent among aged 45 to 54, 78 percent among ages 55 and above, 76 percent among ages 25 to 34, and 59 percent among ages 18 to 24.

The percentage of those registered but not validated to vote was 14 percent among those aged 18 to 24, 17 percent among those aged 25 to 34, 14 percent among those aged 35 to 44, 16 percent among those aged 45 to 54, and 18 percent among those aged 55 and above.

Respondents aged 18 to 24 recorded the highest number of unregistered voters at 28 percent, followed by 7 percent of those aged 25 to 34, 3 percent of those aged 35 to 44, 3 percent of those aged 45 to 54, and 4 percent of those aged 55 and above.

By education, college graduates (79 percent) recorded the highest number of registered and validated voters, followed by those with no or some elementary education (77 percent), high school graduates (76 percent), and elementary graduates (76 percent).

Sixteen percent among college graduates, 17 percent among high school graduates, 16 percent among elementary graduates and 11 percent among those with no or some elementary education are registered voters without biometrics.—Inquirer Research