Comelec wants new general voter registration
The Commission on Elections (Comelec) is pushing for a general voter registration to replace the current voters list.
Comelec Chair George Garcia said voters may use the recently introduced “register anywhere” system to make the registration process easier.
“In the event that we will be allowed to conduct general registration nationwide, we will utilize the register anywhere program,” Garcia told reporters over the weekend.
“This means that if you are studying or working in Manila but [want to vote in] Bicol or Visayas or Mindanao, you can get registered where you are and you won’t need to go home to the provinces,” he explained.
“We want to make voter registration more accessible to the people,” Garcia added.
In July, Garcia called for the annulment of the current list of registered voters to ensure the accuracy of the voters list used by Comelec every election.
Last was in 2003
The last general registration of voters was conducted in 2003, he noted.
Comelec pilot tested the register anywhere system in select malls and government agencies from Dec. 12, 2022, to Jan. 31 this year.
At present, persons eligible to vote have to register at the Comelec office in the city or municipality where they will cast their vote.
The register anywhere project, however, allows would-be voters to go to any Comelec registration site to sign up to vote in another city or municipality.
During the Oct. 30 barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan elections, there were 67,839,861 registered voters 18 years old and above, according to Comelec. INQ
