The Commission on Elections (Comelec) Pangasinan provincial office targets to register around 100,000 new voters from Oct. 20, 2025 to May 18, 2026.
“The total number of people who voted in Pangasinan, 18 and above, is around 2.1 million. Our target, considering that this is a long-term registration, is to register at least 100,000. That’s conservative. That’s our target. We want to add more people to our list. Not only in the regular election, but also in the Sangguniang Kabataan elections,” Pangasinan provincial election supervisor lawyer Marino Salas said in an interview on Monday.
He said the basic requirement for the registration of first-time voters is government issued identification (ID) such as the national ID.
“For the first-timers, we will also accept their school IDs. If they have a birth certificate, it’s just additional. We will accept it. But primarily, what we require is government issued IDs,” he added.
Salas said the resumption of the registration also covers the transfer, correction of entries, and reactivation.
He said Comelec offices will also conduct off-site registrations.
“Some are already coordinating with schools and barangay officials to schedule off-site registrations at different schools,” he added.
The poll body is also setting a specific schedule of activities catering to the indigenous people groups, persons with disabilities, and the elderly, Salas said.
“We go to them. We coordinate with local government officials and schedule with tribe leaders so that we can accommodate our countrymen because of the challenges, especially in the terrain in their places,” he said.
Salas reminded anew the residents to register or avail of Comelec services early to avoid long queues.
“Let’s not wait for the deadline. Although it’s still a long time for May deadline, it’s better to do it earlier for all of us, so we won’t have to fight for the last few weeks or last few days of registration that we are always experiencing,” he said.
Comelec offices are open on Mondays to Saturdays, including holidays. (PNA)