CAGAYAN DE ORO, Philippines – The Senate on Monday, March 2, approved on third and final reading a bill resetting the first regular parliamentary elections in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) to September 2026.

Authored by Senate Majority Leader Juan Miguel Zubiri, Senate Bill No. 1823, aims to provide more time for voter registration and other preparations ahead of the Muslim-majority region’s first parliamentary elections.

Bangsamoro Transition Authority (BTA) officials welcomed the approval, noting that the change ensures a clear schedule and direction for the BARMM transition process.

“Isa itong mahalagang pagbabago para sa BARMM upang may katiyakan na at may malinaw na direksyon ang demokrasya sa ating rehiyon,” said former regional interior minister and BTA Member Naguib Sinarimbo in Facebook post.

(This is an important change for BARMM to ensure that democracy in our region has certainty and a clear direction.)

The elections are a key provision of the Comprehensive Agreement on the Bangsamoro, which established the autonomous regional government and guarantees the people of BARMM the right to elect their own representatives.

Presidential Adviser on Peace, Reconciliation and Unity Carlito Galvez Jr. said the Senate bill’s passage supports the legitimacy and long-term stability of the Bangsamoro government and region.

The parliamentary elections will be the first under the autonomous framework, a milestone in the Mindanao peace process.

In February, members of the House of Representatives endorsed a similar measure resetting the inaugural parliamentary elections in the seven-year-old region to the second Monday of September or, in this case, September 14.

Since it was established in 2019, the BARMM has yet to hold its first regional parliamentary elections. The polls, initially scheduled for 2022, were repeatedly postponed due to legal and administrative issues, including a 2025 Supreme Court decision that invalidated the region’s parliamentary districting laws and the 2024 removal of Sulu province from the Muslim-majority administrative area.

In response, the BARMM parliament passed a new law on districting and amended the region’s electoral legislation in January, paving the way for the upcoming elections. – Rappler.com