President Rodrigo Duterte has declared May 13, Monday a special non-working holiday nationwide to give way for the midterm elections.
The Presidential Communications Operations Office announced today that Duterte has signed Proclamation No. 719, which declares May 13 a special non-working holiday throughout the country to “enable the people to properly exercise their right to vote.”
While an official proclamation is needed, election day is traditionally always a holiday in the Philippines.
The highest position up for grabs in the midterm elections is senator, of which there are 12 seats available. Provincial and local government posts are also part of the polls.
Commission on Elections (COMELEC) spokesman James Jimenez said that there are now over 61 million registered voters in the country, as opposed to the 54 million registered voters back in the 2016 presidential polls, Rappler reported.
Apart from the Monday holiday, the COMELEC also launched a voter’s education campaign to encourage people to vote. It even partnered with Grab Philippines to offer a PHP50 (US$0.96) discount to voters going to polling stations in Metro Manila and Cebu.
Polling precincts will be open from 6am to 6pm on Monday, CNN Philippines reported. This year’s voting hours are longer compared to the 6am to 5pm schedule during the 2016 presidential elections.
