The Commission on Elections (Comelec) on Saturday reported the orderly conduct of the plebiscite in five barangays in Parañaque City, while assuring the public that preparations for the upcoming special congressional election in Dasmariñas City, Cavite, are on track, with no areas currently classified as election hotspots.

Comelec chairman George Garcia said election officials inspected polling centers in Parañaque to ensure the smooth delivery of election materials, voting, canvassing and proclamation of results.

Garcia also visited polling precincts and checked on teachers serving on electoral boards, some of whom reported for duty as early as 1 a.m. and 2 a.m.

He said senior citizens, persons with disabilities, and pregnant women were given priority through early voting from 5 a.m. to 7 a.m.

Unlike national elections, the Parañaque plebiscite is being conducted manually, with ballots cast, counted and canvassed by hand.

Garcia clarified that the result will be determined by a simple plurality of votes.

“It is not necessary for more than half of the registered voters to participate or vote in favor of an option,” Garcia said. “Whichever choice — ‘Yes’ or ‘No’ — receives the higher number of votes will be proclaimed the winner.”

On the special congressional election in Dasmariñas to fill a vacant House seat, Garcia said five candidates have filed their Certificates of Candidacy.

He added that a recent command conference with the Philippine National Police and other agencies found no barangays that need to be placed under the election “area of concern” classification.

Garcia said the district has nearly 497,387 registered voters, which could push canvassing and proclamation of the winner into the early hours of the following day.

Around 6,000 members of the electoral boards are expected to serve in approximately 2,000 clustered precincts. Including poll watchers, nearly 10,000 personnel will take part in the conduct of the election.

Garcia thanked the Dasmariñas City government for donating P50 million to help finance the special election.

Comelec had estimated it would need P198 million to conduct the polls but had no dedicated budget. To bridge the funding gap, the commission reused election materials from the 2025 polls, including indelible ink, deferred other expenditures, and tapped available savings.

Meanwhile, Garcia dismissed speculation linking recent security incidents in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao to the elections.

He said a recent grenade attack was carried out in retaliation after an armed group’s leader was neutralized and was not election-related.

Garcia also said the killing of a municipal councilor in Midsayap, North Cotabato, appeared to have stemmed from personal motives rather than political violence. The Philippine National Police has launched a hot pursuit operation against the suspects.

“So far, we have not recorded any election-related violent incidents in the entire Bangsamoro region,” Garcia said.