Senior citizens arrive at the New Capitol Estates-1 basketball court, one of the polling precincts in Barangay Batasan Hills, to cast their votes for the 2025 midterm elections. Mark Demayo, ABS-CBN News/File
MANILA — The Commission on Elections (Comelec) is again pushing that the vulnerable sectors cast their votes a week before the scheduled polls, its chairman George Garcia said on Wednesday.
The vulnerable sectors include senior citizens, persons with disability, and pregnant women.
Garcia hopes the vulnerable sectors can vote ahead just like uniformed personnel, teachers, and media personnel who are eligible for local absentee voting as they will perform duties on election day.
“Sana makaboto sila isang linggo bago mag-eleksyon. May sarili silang dedicated na presinto na hindi na sila pipila nang napakahaba, na kasama ng mga regular na botante,” he said during the Kapihan sa Manila Bay forum.
The chairman said the ballots would be kept safely.
Garcia added that internet voting would benefit the vulnerable sectors. But, there is no law allowing online elections in the Philippines, he noted, adding that there are areas in the country with unstable internet services.
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2028 NATIONAL, LOCAL ELECTIONS
Meanwhile, Garcia said Comelec was expecting around 74 million voters for the 2028 national and local elections.
Currently, there are 71 million voters. But the figure may increase by three million due to new registrants and reactivation of deactivated voters.
Voter registration will start in November this year until July 30, 2027.
The filing of candidacy for the 2028 elections is set for Sept. 20 to 26, 2027.
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POSSIBLE ‘COMPROMISED’ ELECTION
In the same forum, the Comelec said the 2028 elections could be “compromised” if its 2027 budget would be reduced.
During the House of Representatives’ budget deliberations, Comelec said its proposed budget was slashed by P23 billion.
Garcia said this could affect 8,000 precincts as automated counting machines might be removed.
“‘Pag nagbawas po ng 8,000 presinto, dadami ang botante ng ibang presinto. Sa halip na 600 lang, magiging 800 voters,” he explained. “‘Pag nagkaganun ay hahaba ang pila ng mga kababayan natin sa mismong araw ng eleksyon.”
Garcia is requesting Congress to restore the budget trimmed.
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