MANILA — The Commission on Elections (Comelec) has received around 200,000 applications for voter registration nationwide since enlistment began on Friday, Comelec Chairperson George Garcia said Monday.

In an interview, Garcia said that initial reports from field offices indicate about 200,000 individuals have submitted applications to vote in the Barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan Elections (BSKE) slated for later this year.

“I think, nationwide, we’ve reached 200,000 more or less. Reports coming from the field, the full report will be sent to us later. To us, whether we reach 1 million or not, it doesn’t matter,” he said.

“When we (conducted) registration from Feb. 12 to Sept. 30, it only took 2.2 million. That’s a long time. It’s only 10 days but we aim at registering 1 million. If we reach 1 million, thank you. If not, no problem. What is important is that our countrymen are able to register.”

Garcia said the Comelec aims to give everyone a chance to register and continues its preparations for the Dec. 1 village and youth polls despite pending legislation to move the elections to November 2026.

“We should continue preparing. Because if the election is postponed on Aug. 12, are we going to stop preparing? In my opinion, we should not,” he said.

The bill seeking to postpone the BSKE is expected to be signed by President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. next week.

Garcia also said the Comelec is ready should the postponement be challenged before the Supreme Court.

“We are already expecting someone to go to the SC to question the legality of a law that will be signed. On the part of the Comelec, we have no side (on the issue). We are not pro or against. That is at the discretion of the Executive and legislative. If they say go ahead, we will go ahead. If they say postpone, then postpone,” he said.

Garcia made the statement during the registration of 621 persons deprived of liberty at the Manila City Hall as part of the BSKE preparations. (PNA)