Comelec: At least 20 sites eyed for mall voting for BSK polls

Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, May 26) — The Commission on Elections (Comelec) on Friday said it is coordinating with operators to establish voting sites in around 20 malls across the country for the barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan polls in October.

“Most of the malls that we are engaging are large ones that we have. There are around 20 all over the country and hoping we would increase the number in the coming months,” Comelec spokesperson Rex Laudiangco told CNN Philippines’ The Source.

Laudiangco said less than a million voters will benefit from the mall voting pilot test.

The poll body hopes to increase the number of sites to 50 during the midterm elections in 2025.

Meanwhile, Laudiangco said the Comelec is fully ready for the village-level polls.

Around 92 million ballots were already printed, he noted.

The remaining tasks for Comelec is to distribute these along with other election paraphernalia to the regions, as well as train teachers and other personnel who will be serving as electoral board members on Oct. 30.

Based on Comelec’s latest calendar of activities for the upcoming polls, the filing of certificate of candidacy is on Aug. 28 to Sept. 2, while the campaign period is Oct. 19-28.