“We will have the filing of COCs on Sept. 28” — Garcia on 2026 Barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan Elections

MANILA, Philippines — The filing of certificates of candidacy (COCs) for the scheduled November 2, 2026 Barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan Elections (BSKE) will proceed on September 28, according to Commission on Elections (Comelec) Chairman George Erwin Garcia.

“We will have the filing of COCs on Sept. 28. Our activities will be continuous. That is why our request is that before Sept. 28, it will be made clear to us if the BSKE will happen or not,” Garcia said.

Under the Comelec’s 2026 BSKE calendar, the filing period is set from September 28 to October 5. Election Day is scheduled for November 2 under the existing law.

Garcia said the Comelec will continue preparations because there is currently no enacted law postponing the elections.

“As of today, Nov. 2 is election day. We can’t be blamed if we continue to prepare because based on the law, the election is on Nov. 2,” Garcia said.

However, he clarified that the election activities would immediately stop if a postponement law is enacted.

“In case a law has been approved and signed, there will be no filing (of COCs),” Garcia added.

The Comelec has been urging Congress to settle the matter before the COC filing period begins. Earlier, Garcia said the filing would proceed as scheduled unless the proposed postponement measure becomes law.

The House of Representatives has adopted the Senate measure seeking to move the BSKE to November 2028, but the proposed postponement still requires completion of the legislative process and presidential action before it becomes law.

Garcia earlier said the Comelec was already about 90 percent ready for the BSKE and would continue preparations while the November 2 schedule remains in force.

For now, Garcia stressed that the Comelec is following the existing law and calendar. “We don’t have a law yet (postponing it). What we need is a law,” he said.