Pagadian City - Zamboanga Del Sur News and Information

A TOTAL OF 558,871 Zambosurian voters will cast their ballot this May in the first ever nationwide automated elections, the  latest Comelec voters’ list stated. This number already includes the 109,339 voters of Pagadian City, the new regional center and part of the first district of the province.

The list, which was furnished to this paper last Nov. 16, 2009, does not include newly registered voters in the province during the authorized 5-day extension for registration last Dec. 21-29, 2009.

A source from the provincial Comelec office said that the additional new voters during the extension period in Pagadian City only totalled 395 even as an estimated 1,500 voters will most likely be added to the total number of voters in the province.

Earlier, City Election Officer Dinah Sapong listed a total of 5,592 first time voters in Pagadian City. And accordingly, there are now 143 clustered precincts in lieu of the established 724 in 54 barangays all over the city.

Another Comelec report dated June 2009 obtained from the national office disclosed that there is a total of 936,797 voters in the province of Zamboanga del Sur. Less the present figure, an overall difference of 377,926 is noted.

In the first district, the towns of Tukuran, Aurora, Mahayag, Molave and Labangan can be classified as vote-rich municipalities with voters in each town numbering more than 25,000. The towns of Josefina and Sominot have only 6,193 and 9,299 voters, respectively.

And in the second district, the towns of Bayog, Dimataling, Dumalinao, Margosatubig and Lapuyan are also deemed vote-rich with voters numbering between 17,000 to 20,000 in each of them. Tigbao and Lakewood have the least number of voters, with only 10,558 and 10,864, respectively. Therefore, the first district registered a total of 223,023 voters while the second district only 226,509.

There are 27,793 new registrants for the whole province, including some 6,845 who transferred from other municipalities, it was gathered. It was also learned from Comelec that a total of 4,158 registrants were canceled either by reason of death, transfer, double registry or double entry.

Local Comelec reported that there are two candidates vying in each of the two congressional seats, the governorship and vice-governorship of Zamboanga del Sur and the Pagadian City mayorship and vice-mayorship while 22 candidates are running for the provincial board and another 20 for the city council of Pagadian City.

Comelec Resolution 8646 has confined the dates of campaign for the May polls to March 26 up to May 8 for members of the House of Representatives and elective provincial, city and municipal officials.