Manila, Philippines — The Commission on Elections (Comelec) has issued a call to action for citizens' arm groups and other stakeholders to assist in reactivating approximately 5.3 million voters who have been deactivated due to non-participation in the past two elections, aiming to bolster turnout for the upcoming midterm elections.

According to Philippines News Agency, engaging organizations like the National Movement for Free Elections (Namfrel), Parish Pastoral Council for Responsible Voting (PPCRV), and Legal Network for Truthful Elections (Lente), among others, is crucial for educating these individuals on the importance of reactivating their registration. "The goal is reactivation so we have requested assistance from Namfrel, PPCRV, Lente, and other cause-oriented groups. The effort is to enable our compatriots who are not on the voters' list to register and vote. Under the law, if you do not vote in two elections, that is the result. You would be deactivated," Garcia explained during a briefing on updates and preparations for simultaneous midterm polls and the Bangsamoro parliamentary elections.

This large number of deactivated voters means that Comelec will likely miss its target of 70 million to 71 million registered voters for the forthcoming polls, with the current number of registered voters standing at 66 million. Garcia also highlighted that nearly three million individuals have registered during the ongoing voter registration, which will conclude on September 30.

Garcia firmly stated that there would be no extension to the voter registration period, emphasizing the need to adhere to Comelec's timelines to finalize the list of voters and the clustering of precincts. "The registration has been ongoing since February. We already have a long time for it. The Comelec will be behind its timelines. We need to finalize the list of voters and clustering of precincts. We need that for the data of precincts," he added.