18,180 national, local seats up for grabs

in the 2022 Philippine elections

The Comelec, however, has yet to determine the allocation of

seats in the BARMM parliamentary polls due to its lack of an
electoral code, among other reasons.

Politicians from across the country will vie for 18,180 elective seats in the 2022 national and local polls,
according to the Commission on Elections (Comelec).

Based on Comelec Resolution No. 10713 released on August 11, these include 77 national posts: 1
president, 1 vice president, 12 senators, and 63 party-list representatives.
8 BARMM reserved seats and sectoral representatives
Most notably, the number of legislative district seats up for grabs rose to 253 in 2022 from 243 in 2019.
That’s due to multiple redistricting laws passed in the 17th Congress and 18th Congress.

These new districts are in Bulacan (2), Caloocan (1), Rizal (2), Bataan (1), and Southern Leyte (1). Santa
Rosa City in Laguna, Mandaue City in Cebu, and General Santos City in South Cotabato are also classified
as new congressional districts.
The Comelec, however, has said it has yet to determine the allocation of the seats in the BARMM
parliamentary elections due to the unavailability of the following:

Bangsamoro Electoral Code

Apportionment of the BARMM into parliamentary districts
Manner of election of the reserved and electoral seats
Treatment of the 63 barangays in North Cotabato for purpose of the election
Congress has been working to consolidate bills seeking to postpone the 2022 BARMM elections due to
the challenges brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic in building the Bangsamoro government.

Some 61 million people are projected by the poll body to be eligible to cast their ballots in the 2022
elections. – Rappler.com
Student leader underscores
youth's role in 2022 elections
Published May 3, 2021, 9:59 AM
by  Gabriela Baron
In today’s world, young voters are crucial because young people are engaging with politics
more than ever.

A first-time voter registers at the Commission on Election (Comelec) office in Pasay City on Wednesday
(March 10, 2021). The poll body said some 1.3 million eligible new voters are expected to register for
the 2022 national elections. (PNA photo)

According to data from the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) and Commission on
Elections (Comelec), 40 million Filipinos ages 18 to 35 are eligible to vote in 2022.

“As youths, which make up a substantial proportion of the voting population, we have a
huge role to play in the upcoming election and that is to vote for comprehensive and
competitive leaders,” Jandeil Roperos, National President of the National Union of the
Students of the Philippines (NUSP), said during the E-Heras: The Power of Youth Vote
webinar over the weekend.

“It is important that every youth is aware of what is happening in our society, in our
country, and practice our right to vote. Because in this way, we can vote for leaders who
will respond to the health and economic crisis faced by our country,” Roperos said in
Filipino.

The webinar, which aims to highlight the importance of youth participation during elections,
was organized by the University of the Philippines (UP) Harong, an organization of UP
Diliman students from Camarines Sur, Naga, and Iriga.

Roperos noted that the youth can shape or shift public opinions through its influence in
social media and have the potential to significantly impact the outcome of elections.

“Because information is easily available online, today’s youth are socially and politically
aware. Because of that, everyone can share their opinion on social media. People are
noticing our advocacies and calls because we are able to make them trend on social media,”
she added.

“Our role is huge, because we are the ones who shift public opinion. We have a lot of
energy, we are enthusiastic, we are progressive, and we are open to new ideas.”

Young Filipinos composed 37 percent of the entire electorate. 19.6 million Filipino youth
voted last 2019.

In 2022, more young Filipinos will be eligible to cast their votes. With that, Roperos is
encouraging her fellow youth to support patriotic and progressive candidates who “advance
the agenda of the people and the youth.”

She also asked her fellow youth to encourage others to also take part in the national
elections.

“Let’s not get tired of influencing or educating our fellow youth. Let’s not antagonize them,
but understand where they are coming from. Let’s explain to them that it is our right to vote
and we must maximize it by electing progressive and competent leaders,” Roperos said.

The Comelec in April said that 2.6 million first-time voters have already registered for the
2022 elections.
The agency is hopeful to reach its target of 4 million first-time voters before the registration
ends on Sept. 30, 2021.

Driving force: Filipino students,

youth urged to participate in the
2022 elections
Published May 10, 2021, 11:25 PM
by  Merlina Hernando-Malipot
“Will my vote actually matter?”

A voter applicant fills up a registration form at the Comelec (PNA photo)

This is the most common apprehension of young people when it comes to matters related to
the election  according to Youth Leadership for Democracy (YouthLed) Program Officer
lawyer Mildred Ople.
Ople, who was among the panelists in the “Kapihan sa ASoG: Ligtas Halalan 2022” held on
Monday, May 10, shared that there is still a need for concerned sectors to help in convincing
the Filipino youth that their votes matter  when electing the next leaders of the country.

“Based on our consultation with the young people, one of the biggest apprehensions of the
youth nowadays is: Will their vote actually matter? Lalo na isa lang naman sila (especially
since they are just one) so they think that it won’t make any difference,” Ople said.

Three issues

Based on the motion study conducted by YouthLed as far as registration is concerned, Ople
noted that there are three issues the young people are facing: access, process, and the
motivation to go out to actually register.

While registration forms were made more accessible, Ople noted that the access to the
Commission on Election (Comelec) offices is “really one of the concerns.” She also pointed
out that in terms of process, the Comelec is also facing a lot of difficulties because of the
challenges of the pandemic. “The registration days are also shortened,” she added.

(JANSEN ROMERO / MANILA BULLETIN)

Ople explained that motivation is the “last issue” of the young people. For many young
people, participating in the election is not an utmost priority.

Students, she explained, are busy with other activities like the online classes or the module
that they are doing. “The young professionals are working from home while and the-out-of-
school youth and other vulnerable youth are also helping their families to survive during this
pandemic,” she added.

Biggest contribution

For Ople, the biggest contribution of the young people this 2022 elections is that they are
“one of the driving forces” – not only during the registration but also on election day itself.

Unlike in the 2016 and 2019 elections – where there were a slight decline in the
participation of the youth from about 33 percent in 2016 and 31 percent in 2019 – Ople
expressed hope that in the 2022 elections that the number of youth participation will
increase.

Despite these challenges, Ople said that there are a lot of ways to motivate and convince the
youth to participate in the election.

“What is more effective than a fellow youth convincing a fellow young person to actually
participate in the election?” Ople said.

Teachers, she said, can also help. “They used it to incentivise their students – that’s one way
of motivating them to register [and] we hope that all of these efforts will help out increase
the registration numbers,” she added.

To address the issues among the youth, there are various efforts with different groups
participating in the voters registration initiatives.

She explained that a lot of youth organizations – not just in key cities but as far as in the
island provinces – are all there to support to reach out to as many young people as possible.

“We’re glad to be helping out in supporting this very important call for the young people to
register and vote,” Ople said. “They are the driving forces in information dissemination and
in the actual election day,” she added.
Exactly a year before the elections , the “Kapihan sa ASoG: Ligtas Halalan 2022” – which
was was organized by the Ateneo School of Government through Participate PH with
YouthLed PH – discussed how the government is preparing for the 2022 elections and how
the electorate can help ensure that the “elections is safe, fair, and free.”

Young Filipinos comprise 52% of

total registered voters for 2022
polls so far — Comelec

Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, September 11) — Young Filipino voters may make a
difference in next year's national elections as they now comprise 52% of the total
registered voters, Commission on Elections (Comelec) director James Jimenez
believes.

"That's how significant the youth vote is in the coming election," Jimenez said during an
online briefing with CNN Philippines on Saturday.

In his presentation, the official said that as of July, 60.46 million Filipinos are already
registered for the 2022 general elections—higher than Comelec's target of 59 million.

Out of that total, 31.41 million voters are in the age group of 18-40 years old, classified
as the youth vote.

Despite the pandemic, Jimenez said the poll body expects to record more registered
voters for the coming elections. In 2019, the number of registered voters stood at
61,843,771.

"We are closer to 62 million, the numbers keep growing. We have massive registration
going on right now," he said, adding that Comelec has been processing over 25,000
registrants per day.
Jimenez hopes the pandemic task force would consider election as essential activity so
Filipinos could smoothly go to their polling precinct regardless of quarantine status.

‘Youth voters have more power

than they think’
By 
Christine Joyce A. Paras and Nolene Beatrice H. Crucillo
 -
September 23, 2021
554
 
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Commissi
on on Elections spokesman James Jimenez speaks during the “Bata, Bata Mulat KNB? The
Youth Vote in 2022” webinar on Sept. 8.
“The youth will be able to dictate much of the outcome of the elections as well as the shape
of government to come.”
Commission on Elections (Comelec) spokesman James Jimenez highlighted the role of the
youth in choosing the country’s next set of leaders during a webinar titled “Bata, Bata, Mulat
KNB? The Youth Vote in 2022” on Sept. 8.

Jimenez, a UST law alumnus, said young voters aged 18 to 21 accounted for 7 percent of
the country’s total voting population and could sway the results of the election.

“Kapag marami kang youth participants in the electoral system, nakikita natin na nagi-infuse
sila ng bagong ideas sa diskusyon natin. Marami tayong napag-uusapang bagong issues,
mga bagong konsepto na dati medyo ini-ignore,” he said

Jimenez added that youth participation could influence the passage of more “youth-centric
laws” in the future.

“Ang problema kasi sa karamihan ng batas natin, hindi niya talaga pinagtutuunan ng pansin
ang ispesipikong hamon na hinaharap ng mga kabataan,” he said.

‘Informed citizenry’

Asst. Prof. Louie Benedict Ignacio, president of the Philippine Sociological Society, urged
the youth to be “critical enough to pick out which is true and which is fake.”

“The goal now is to make sure that the young people, especially the first-time registrants,
have access to information, be adequately and properly informed, and be critical enough to
pick out which is true and which is fake to critically enrich the discourse,” Ignacio said.

“Kung ang sinasabi ng pattern ay nakukuha ng mga kabataan ang impormasyon nila sa
social media, kahit Facebook man yan, TikTok man yan, Instagram man yan. Dapat
tinitingnan [ng mga institusyon] kung paano nila iyon magagamit para mapanatiling may
alam ang kabataan,” he added.
“Bata, Bata, Mulat KNB? The Youth Vote in 2022,” was the second webinar in the Philippine
Communications Society’s “National Forum on Communication and Democracy: Philippine
Elections 2022” series.

The webinar was launched in cooperation with the University of the Philippines’ internet TV
network, TVUP, and featured representatives from the youth sector.