73 million ballots to be printed for 2025 polls

MANILA, Philippines — Up to 73 million ballots will be printed for the 2025 midterm elections and the first parliamentary polls in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM), according to the Commission on Elections.

Comelec Chairman George Garcia yesterday said that of the 73 million ballots, two million are for the BARMM elections.

One million are test ballots for the poll body’s information campaign on automated counting machines.

Garcia said the Comelec could opt to print additional ballots depending on the outcome of the ongoing voter registration.

He said he inspected newly delivered machines for ballot printing at the National Printing Office (NPO) yesterday.

“I hope these machines can meet our expectations. We are not in a hurry to print, we are after the quality of the ballots,” Garcia said, noting thinner paper or ordinary bond paper would be used for the ballots.

The Comelec said it allotted P1 billion for the ballot printing.

NPO chief Rene Acosta said they expect to print one million ballots per day now that they have new machines.

“We will start printing test ballots next month and the official ballots by December. We are hoping to finish by March,” Acosta said.

Garcia said the ballots, automated counting machines and pens will undergo tests prior to the conduct of the elections.

MILF ready for BARMM polls

Meanwhile, the Moro Islamic Liberation Front said it would not seek an extension of the tenure of the members of the Bangsamoro parliament as the MILF is ready for the first parliamentary elections in the BARMM.

The MILF made the statement during a dialogue held in Sultan Kudarat town in Maguindanao del Norte on Monday.

BARMM Chief Minister Ahod Balawag Ebrahim and Education Minister Mohagher Iqbal, both senior officials of the MILF, led the dialogue in Barangay Darapanan.

Ebrahim, who heads the 80-seat interim Bangsamoro parliament, said among their objectives in regional governance is to maximize programs related to peace and the socioeconomic agenda of the MILF’s peace agreement with Malacañang.

He said the MILF would transform from being a revolutionary group into a social movement for peace and progress in the autonomous region. — John Unson