Few things to remember about the ongoing voter registration.
Voter registration happens Monday to Saturday, including holidays, at all local Commission on Elections (Comelec) offices nationwide, until November 30, 2017. Registration hours are from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
If you’re 15 to 17 years old and you registered in July 2016, or from November 2016 to April 2017, you don’t have to register now. Your name is already on the roster of Sangguniang Kabataan (SK) voters, and you will be able to vote only for SK officials in the May 14, 2018, Barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan elections (BSKE).
If you’re 15 to17 years old and you registered in July 2016, or from November 2016 to April 2017, and you’re turning 18 on or before the date of the 2018 BSKE, your name will be automatically submitted to the Election Registration Board (ERB). If the ERB approves your “application,” you will be included in the list of barangay voters for the 2018 BSKE; you will be voting for both SK and barangay officials.
If you’re a registered SK voter now—which means you’re 15 to 30 years old— but you’re turning 31 on or before the date of the 2018 BSKE, then you will be automatically removed from the SK list of voters. On election day, you will only be voting for barangay officials.
Local Comelec offices during this period will entertain applications for new registration, i.e., first-time voters, as well as applications for reactivation, change or correction of entries, and inclusion or reinstatement in the list of voters.
Registered voters who haven’t voted in two consecutive national elections automatically have their voter registration deactivated. In order to vote again, an application for reactivation must be filed. An application for change or correction of entries is generally intended to make the records reflect a new civil status, i.e., from “single” to “married,” for example, and to address any errors in the record. An application for reinstatement or inclusion is necessary if you’ve lost and recently reacquired the right to vote, or if you have been incorrectly excluded from the list of voters.
No applications for transfer of registration will be entertained during this registration cycle. This includes all forms of transfers—transfers to a different city or municipality, and transfers within the same city or municipality. If your registration has been deactivated and you want to have it reactivated, you can only do that in the same city or municipality where you were originally registered; reactivation anywhere else counts as a transfer, and will not be entertained.
Bring a valid picture identification card. You may also be asked to provide documents which prove your residence, such as a billing statement in your name. In some cases, particularly for SK registrants, you may be required to provide a valid birth certificate to prove your age.
There is currently no voter registration in the province of Lanao del Sur, owing to the safety and security conditions still prevailing in that area.
As a rule of thumb, the Comelec constantly strives to increase the public’s access to electoral processes, like voter registration, as this will greatly improve the inclusivity of elections. Thus, local Comelec offices may conduct satellite registration during this period. Those who want to have satellite registration in their locality may approach their local election officer for detailed information and instructions on how to make that happen.