MANILA CITY, METRO MANILA — Starting May 3, new and eligible voters for the upcoming 2013 elections can start filing their applications, the Commission on Elections (Comelec) said.
“We are urging all eligible first-time voters who will turn at least 18 years old on May 2013 to file their voter's registration this early. Let us avoid last-minute registrations so we can take part in electing our nation's leaders,” said Comelec spokesman James Jimenez.
Deadline of registration is October 31, 2012 but the Comelec is encouraging early registration so it can prepare better for the conduct of automated polls with the use of special ballots, such as those used in the May 2010 national elections, he added.
Aside from first-time voters, persons who want to transfer registration records to a new residence; change, update or correct entries such as those for newly-wed women who changed surnames; and voters whose records were deactivated for failure to vote in the past two elections can also file their applications within the registration period.
All voter applications must be personally filed at the office of the election officer in the municipal or city office where the applicant resides and wishes to vote.
Voters no longer need to bring photographs because his or her biometrics records composed of a digital photograph, fingerprints, and signature will be entered in data capturing machines during the filing of registration.
The biometrics registration is important to purge the voter's list of duplicate registration records and to update records of voters who were unable to enroll their biometrics information with Comelec, according to Resolution No. 9149 promulgated on February 22.
Applications will be received from Monday to Saturday, inclusive of holidays during regular office hours from 8am to 5pm. There will be no registration on December 22 to January 2 for the Christmas break.
Schedules for satellite registration in highly-populated areas will be announced after coordination with Comelec municipal and town offices.
Applicants must bring any valid school or government ID to register. Community tax certificates (Cedula) and certifications from the barangay will not be honored as valid identification documents.
For inquiries, contact the Comelec education and information department at (02) 525-9294. - By: Anna Valmero
