MANILA - A total of 2.8 million first-time voters have registered and the figures are expected to reach 3 million as registration closes tomorrow, Commission on Elections spokesperson James Jimenez told journalists in a forum on Friday.

The number, however, still falls short of an estimated 9 million potential first-time voters as reported by a network of student groups pushing for the youth to register.

Interested youth

“People are lining-up all over the place, not just in Metro Manila but also in the provinces,” Jimenez noted. The number includes those who registered from December 2008 to October 2009.

The number has increased by 1.2 million since July, when the elections commission reported a total of 1.6 million first-time registrants since December 2008.

Aside from extending registration days from Monday to Saturday, the Comelec has also conducted mobile registrations in numerous schools, barangays, and municipalities.

Jimenez attributes the increase to 2 factors: 1) 2010 will be a national elections, and 2) The election process will be automated, which is a first in the country’s election history.

Princess Abante, commissioner of the National Youth Commission, notes that the increase reflects how the youth are empowered to do their part.

“Youth are very empowered now, not just in the elections but also in other national issues,” she said. Further, she noticed a marked rise in youth organizations that encourage the youth to register for the elections.

Youth movements that are not directly into the elections have also flourished and currently plays active roles in empowering the youth to be responsible voters.

Registration problems

Despite the increase in registrants, however, the numbers still falls short of an estimated 9 million first-time voters that are not registered as reported by the First Time Voters Project, a network of student groups pushing for the youth to register.

The increased number of last-minute registrants, however, resulted in long lines, especially in big cities like Quezon City. (Read: New voters wait long lines to beat registration deadlines)

Aside from the grueling process, Abante noted that a common problem in registration areas is the limited number of application forms.

The Comelec also has to filter out potentials cheats. This includes dubious registrants such as those featured in a recent report where around 600 first-time voters in Taguig allegedly bore the same home address and birthday.

When asked what Comelec will do to prevent these anomalies, Jimenez said the issue will be discussed only after the registration period.

“Right now, our [Comelec] priority is the registration,” he said.

Despite reported registration bottlenecks, Comelec will no longer extend the registration. To accommodate the influx of registrants, the commission has already opened its offices last Sunday, October 25, 2009 and has extended its officer hours until 9 p.m. Comelec has also extended the registration hours to 12 midnight on October 31.

As of April 2009, Comelec reported more than 44 million registered voters nationwide. – abs-cbnNEWS.com