Comelec 'very ready' for first BARMM polls in September — Garcia

The Commission on Elections (Comelec) said it is “very ready” for the first Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) parliamentary elections on September 14, 2026, Comelec Chairman George Erwin Garcia said Monday.

"Comelec is fully prepared for the September 14, 2026 BARMM parliamentary elections. At present, we are conducting the hardware acceptance test of 6,500 voting machines." he said.

According to Garcia, Comelec has begun the hardware acceptance test (HAT) of automated counting machines (ACMs) at its warehouse in Biñan, Laguna.

He said the HAT is part of Commission on Audit requirements to ensure all machines are fully functional before deployment.

“We do not simply accept equipment because this is being monitored by COA. Once it is accepted, it means the contract of sale or lease is already perfected,” he said.

“We are inspecting them one by one so that if there is a defect, it is immediately set aside. The entire machine is checked, not just the defective part,” Garcia added.

After the HAT, the machines will undergo simulation exercises, including a “mini election” per province to test transmission of results.

Garcia said a pre-logic and accuracy test (pre-LAT) will follow, which serves as the final test before certification by the technical evaluation committee.

“We have already secured international certification, and the source code is deposited with the Bangko Sentral,” he added.

‘No failure of election’

To address possible issues, Comelec will deploy contingency machines—10 per municipality in BARMM.

“We have contingency machines, 10 for each municipality. That is why 6,500 machines will be delivered even though there are only 5,212 precincts,” Garcia said.

Comelec will also deploy spare batteries and establish repair hubs in every province.

“It is not always guaranteed that there will be no glitches, but what is important is having a contingency plan so the elections can proceed. Our instruction is: no failure of elections in any precinct,” he said.

ACM shading threshold

Comelec is proposing to increase the automated counting machine shading threshold from 15 percent to 25 percent.

Garcia said the 15-percent threshold used in the 2025 elections did not affect credibility, citing a 99.9992-percent accuracy rating in the random manual audit.

“No problems were found with the 15 percent. But to avoid any further issues, the technical team is recommending that it be increased to 25 percent,” he said.

If approved, ACMs will be reprogrammed to recognize lighter shading up to the revised threshold.

Election-related violence

Garcia said Comelec has asked the PNP and AFP technical working groups to refine their definition of “election-related violence,” noting discrepancies in classification.

“Sometimes the figures of Comelec and the PNP do not match because incidents are immediately recorded as election-related even if they turn out to be just personal disputes,” he said.

He also called for clearer guidelines on the coverage period of election-related violence.

Based on Comelec's assessment, the BARMM elections have so far begun peacefully, following the filing of candidacies in May.

Gun ban

The gun ban will run from July 16 to September 29.

“We hope everyone will cooperate. No one should casually carry firearms, whether licensed or not,” Garcia said.

PNP and AFP personnel will enforce checkpoints, but only under the “plain view doctrine,” he added.

“There is no need to have anything opened or to make people get out of their vehicles,” he said.

During the 2025 elections, nearly 16,000 individuals were arrested for violating the gun ban.—MCG, GMA News