Comelec vows tight watch vs. multiple registrants during voter sign-up

THE COMMISSION on Elections (Comelec) will tighten its watch against multiple registrants during the resumption of voter registration next month.

"The public can be assured that each applicant – new, transfers, correction – will go through our cleansing process so that we can ensure that there will be no multiple registrants," Comelec spokesperson John Rex Laudiangco said in an interview Wednesday.

He also assured lawmakers that the current voters list has been cleared of multiple registrants.

"The current voters list we have is now practically clean," he said.

Laudiangco said the poll body has cleansed the voters list before the 2023 Barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan Elections (BSKE).

"Just last year, almost 500,000 registration records have been cleansed from the voters list," he said.

The poll body made the assurance in response to a resolution filed by House of Representatives Assistant Majority Leader and Leyte 4th District Rep. Richard Gomez, urging it to cleanse and update its list of voters.

Under House Resolution 1542, Gomez said, it is important for the Comelec to cleanse the voters list ahead of the voter registration period for the forthcoming 2025 midterm polls.

The Comelec is looking to register about 3 million voters, during the registration period for the 2025 midterm polls, which runs from Feb. 12 to Sept. 30 this year. ( Ferdinand Patinio)