Comelec to resume ballot printing for BARMM polls on Aug. 28

Commission on Elections Chairman George Garcia — Photo from Comelec/Facebook

MANILA, Philippines — The Commission on Elections (Comelec) will resume on Thursday the printing of official ballots for the first Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) Parliamentary Elections, emphasizing that it will not alter the original ballot faces.

Comelec Chairperson George Erwin Garcia made the announcement on Wednesday, a week after the poll body suspended the printing of official ballots following the approval of the bill redistributing seven seats originally allocated to Sulu province.

“We will resume the printing of ballots tomorrow morning,” Garcia said in Filipino during an interview with reporters.

READ: Comelec suspends printing of ballots for Bangsamoro polls

The Comelec had initially planned to begin the printing of the official ballots for Basilan, Tawi-Tawi, and the Special Geographic Area last Thursday. However, this was suspended to allow the poll body to “further study the implications of the approved bill.”

The Bangsamoro Transition Authority earlier announced the passage on third and final reading of Parliament Bill No. 351, which seeks to amend Bangsamoro Autonomy Act No. 58 and redistribute the seven district seats originally intended for Sulu.

A Supreme Court ruling in September 2024 excluded Sulu from BARMM after the province rejected the ratification of the Bangsamoro Organic Law in a plebiscite.

Under the approved bill, the parliamentary district seats will be redistributed as follows: nine for Lanao del Sur; five for Maguindanao del Norte; five for Maguindanao del Sur; four for Basilan; four for Tawi-Tawi; three for Cotabato City; and two for the Special Geographic Area (SGA).

Originally, Lanao del Sur was allotted eight parliamentary seats; four each for Maguindanao del Norte and Maguindanao del Sur; three each for Basilan and Tawi-Tawi; two for Cotabato; one for SGA; and seven for Sulu.

In line with this, Garcia also announced that the poll body will proceed with preparations for 73 parliamentary seats instead of the initially planned 80.

Garcia explained that if the Comelec waits for the fate of the approved bill—whether vetoed or signed by BARMM Chief Minister Abdulraof Macacua—it would delay election preparations.

“We will stick with the status quo, preparing for 73 [seats]. The parliament will decide what to do with the seven seats. That was our position before we suspended printing and preparations,” Garcia said in Filipino.

Garcia added that the poll body is ready to defend its decision if questioned. He also reiterated his concerns about the approved bill, pointing out that while candidacy filing is already closed, the ballot faces would be affected by changes in district composition.

READ: Comelec: BARMM polls to proceed despite ballot printing postponement

“Because of that, we cannot afford such a lengthy extension of preparations. Why? Because the system would need to be reconfigured to adopt the new proposal for each district,” Garcia added.

He explained that reconfiguring each district would take 15 days, on top of the time needed to print the ballots for the elections.

Garcia previously pointed out that the redistribution of seats, which could transfer municipalities from one district to another, might complicate the ballot printing process since the ballots are precinct-specific and include candidate photos and political party logos.

“The ballot faces will not be changed. Even the ‘none of the above’ will remain, as will the deployment plans for all materials, ballots, machines, and even the timeline,” he said in Filipino.

Garcia earlier raised concerns about the “none of the above” option on the ballot, where voters can shade the choice if they do not want to vote for any candidate or political party. He noted this raises questions about how winners will be determined if this option garners the most votes.

He added that Comelec has asked the parliament to clarify the “none of the above” provision in the election code, while the poll body will also issue a resolution on how it will be treated in the elections. /jpv