The Commission on Elections (Comelec) is set to conduct the pilot test of mall voting for the 2023 Barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan Elections (BSKE) in 15 malls around the country.
The selected malls are in Metro Manila, Region IV-A, Region V and Region VII, the poll body said.
“The Education and Information Department will provide the public of the details regarding the selected malls and other relevant data for mall voting once it has been finalized,” Comelec said in a statement Friday evening.
“Through these efforts, voters from select clustered precincts of select barangays proximate to the partner malls shall participate in the mall voting,” it added.
In January, the Comelec said it will hold a pilot run of mall voting in five Metro Manila malls— SM Manila, Robinsons Manila, Robinsons Magnolia and two others. It cited the advantages of using malls as voting sites instead of classrooms, including security, prevention of sample ballots distribution, and the preservation of school equipment.
The BSKE has been repeatedly postponed since 2016. In October, President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. signed into law the measure delaying the December 2022 BSKE to the last Monday of October 2023.—LDF, GMA Integrated News
