Comelec targets 3M additional voters for 2028 polls

MANILA, Philippines — The Commission on Elections (Comelec) is targeting an additional three million registered voters ahead of the May 2028 national and local elections as it prepares to open a nine-month voter registration period.

Registration will run from Nov. 10, 2026, to July 30, 2027.

However, registration in Naga City and Batanes will begin a week after their respective electoral exercises this month, Comelec Chair George Erwin Garcia said.

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Naga City will hold a plebiscite on Nov. 21 to determine whether it will become a highly urbanized city, while Batanes will hold special elections on Nov. 28 to elect its representative to the lone congressional district following the death of Rep. Ciriaco Gato Jr.

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READ: Naga City, 6 Batanes towns to skip Nov. 10 voter registration reopening

Garcia said the commission aims to increase the country’s registered voters from the current 71 million to 74 million by 2028.

“Currently, we have 71 million registered voters, and our plan is to add 3 million, bringing the total to 74 million voters by 2028,” Garcia said in an ambush interview on Thursday, Nov. 5.

He said the nine-month registration period would give the Comelec enough time to finalize and clean up the voters’ lists, print the official copies, and allow candidates to verify the registered electorate ahead of the 2028 elections.

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READ: Comelec reopens voter registration in November for 2028 elections

Applications will first have to be approved by the Election Registration Board of each city or municipality before undergoing checks through the Automated Fingerprint Identification System.

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The system will cross-match applicants’ fingerprints and signatures against existing records to determine whether they are already registered or have multiple registrations, Garcia said.

“We want to complete the cleansing of our voters’ list before 2027,” he said.

READ: Barangay certificates, cedulas not valid for voter registration – Comelec

Garcia added that the commission also wanted to ensure that those filing their certificates of candidacy for the 2028 elections are registered voters.

“We want to ensure that those who file their certificates of candidacy are registered voters, so there will be no question about their eligibility to vote,” he said.

He described the upcoming registration period as the last opportunity for voters to register ahead of the May 2028 national and local elections.

Garcia also reminded applicants that barangay certificates would no longer be accepted as proof of identity.

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Instead, they may present government-issued IDs or other valid identification documents, including student, library and senior citizen IDs bearing their name, photograph and address. /cb