BAGUIO CITY – The Commission on Elections (COMELEC) will be establishing priority polling precincts (PPPs) in four areas in the Cordillera in time for the casting of votes for the May 12, 2025 mid-term elections.
Lawyer Vanessa Roncal, assistant regional director of the Cordillera office of the COMELEC, said that the areas that applied for the establishment of the PPP are Tuba, Atok and Kibungan in Benguet and another area in Apayao.
Under the PPP concept, senior citizens, persons with disabilities (PWDs and pregnant women can cast their votes in the established precincts by shading the numbers opposite the names of the candidates of their choice but they will not be the ones to feed their filled ballots to the designated automated counting machines (ACMs) in their clustered precincts.
She claimed that the PPP will ensure the accessibility and convenience of the members of the venerable sectors when casting their votes but they can also opt to avail of the early voting schedule approved by the poll body from 5 a.m. to 7 a.m. on May 12, 2025.
The COMELEC official said that the PPPs will be operational from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. only unlike the regular clustered precincts where the casting of votes will be from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.
According to her, the early closure of the PPPs will pave the way for the feeding of the casted ballots to the designated clustered precincts of the members of the vulnerable sectors within the polling centers that have jurisdiction over the said PPPs.
However, Roncal called on senior citizens, PWDs and pregnant women in the areas where there are established PPPs to patronize these for their own convenience and to give them the chance of casting their votes without encountering any hustle compared to when casting their votes in their designated clustered precincts.
The establishment of the PPP in certain areas around the country for the May 12, 2025 mid-term elections is one of the strategies adopted by the poll body to ensure that members of the vulnerable and marginalized sectors can exercise their right to vote with utmost convenience and for them to have access to their respective precincts on election day.
According to her, senior citizens, PWDs and pregnant women can also avail of the early voting schedule approved by the poll body from 5 a.m. to 7 a.m. on election day of there are no established priority polling precincts in their respective polling centers to avoid being inconvenienced by the expected influx of voters wanting to cast their votes.
COMELEC officials encouraged members of the vulnerable sectors to avail of the various schemes implemented by the poll body when casting their votes in the exercise of their right to vote. By Dexter A. See
