The voter registration period for the 2025 National and Local Elections has begun, with offices of the Commission on Elections conducting various activities on National Voters Day, Feb. 12, 2024, to encourage constituents to register as voters.
This Feb. 14, the Virac election office held the Special Register Anywhere Program (RAP) at the Catanduanes State Colleges gymnasium to accommodate qualified voters, including those studying in the capital town, to register without need of going back to their native towns.
This will be followed by another Special RAP in barangay Talisoy on Feb. 23 as part of its twice-monthly satellite registration.
Election Officer III Atty. Maria Theresa Dolores said the RAP desks at CatSU will accept the following applications: new registration; transfer of registration from another city/municipality; transfer of registration record from foreign post to local; correction of entries or change of status; and reactivation of registration record.
The first-time registrant must be at least 18 years of age, a resident of the Philippines for at least one (1) year and in the place wherein he or she proposes to vote, for at least six (6) months immediately preceding the National and Local Elections.
The registrant is required to submit any of the following proof of identification: National ID (PhilSys), Postal ID card, PWD ID card, Student ID or Library card, LTO driver’s license, NBI clearance, Philippine passport, SSS, GSIS or any Unified ID card, IBP card, PRC license, barangay identification certificate with photo, or any government issued valid ID.
The resumption of voters registration will be done until Sept. 20, 2024, 8AM to 5PM, Mondays to Saturdays (including holidays), except on March 28-30 during the Holy Week celebration.
To commemorate the first-ever declaration of National Voters Day, the issuance of Voter’s Certification in all Offices of the Election Officers, COMELEC National Central File Division, and COMELEC Office for Overseas Voting will be free of charge beginning Feb. 12.
The same privilege will be given to registered voters who belong to the vulnerable sectors including Senior Citizens, Persons with Disability, Persons Deprived of Liberty, Indigenous Peoples, and members of the Indigenous Cultural Communities.
The RAP is an innovative program of the COMELEC wherein qualified Filipinos can register as voters anywhere nationwide without going back to their place of residence.
This program addresses the concern of those who are currently away from their place of residence due to employment, school, and other reasons but would like to register as a voter in the same without the need to physically go there.
Qualified Filipinos who would like to avail the RAP can either: (1) go to the Office of the Election Officer (OEO) in the place where they are currently staying and find the designated RAP lane; or (2) go to RAP registration sites established in malls, schools, and government agencies that COMELEC has partnered with.