AMID the uncertainties surrounding the schedule of the Barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan Elections (BSKE), the Commission on Elections (Comelec) has decided to scrap the date of the elections in the template of the official ballots to be used during the poll exercise.
In Minute Resolution No. 25-0747, the Comelec en banc approved the recommendation to remove the date “December 1, 2025” in the official BSKE ballots that will be used.
“The Commission, after due deliberation, resolves, to approve the proposal of the Project Management Office for the 2025 Barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan Elections to remove the date ‘December 01, 2025’ from the layout and all accountable forms for the upcoming BSKE,” the poll commissioners said.
The move, they said, would ensure that the official ballots to be printed may still be used by the Comelec regardless if the BSKE pushes through on December 1, 2025 or is deferred to November 2026.
“This adjustment would help ensure that the forms already produced may still be utilized, regardless of whether the electoral activity proceeds in December 2025 or in November 2026,” the resolution stated.
It said this would prevent wastage of public funds and other resources in the event of changes in the BSKE calendar.
“It is intended to prevent unnecessary duplication of efforts, minimize resource wastage, and preserve logistical efficiency for materials classified as either accountable or non-accountable, or even potential holds in the production process,” it also said.
Congress has approved a bill setting the term of barangay and youth officials, and resetting the December 2025 BSKE to the first Monday of November 2026.
President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has yet to sign the measure.
