Canvassing of votes for senators, party-lists begins

MANILA – The Commission on Elections (Comelec) en banc, sitting as the National Board of Canvassers (NBOC), officially began on Tuesday the canvassing of the Certificates of Canvass (COCs) for senators and party-list groups in the just-concluded May 9 polls.

The first to be canvassed was the COC from Abra, followed by Malabon and Benguet.

Also canvassed were the COCs from Kalinga, Apayao, Mountain Province, and Ifugao.

The NBOC said almost all of the COCs have been electronically transmitted except for Region 9 (Zamboanga Peninsula) and the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM).

On Monday, the NBOC officially convened but was suspended as they have not received any COC at that time.

The NBOC again suspended the proceedings past 9 p.m. on Tuesday and will resume at 10 a.m. on May 11.

Commissioner George Garcia proposed to create a sub-committee to segregate the votes for national positions.

“(We are) creating a sub-canvassing body for party-list groups in a bid to segregate the canvassing of votes for senators and party-list groups,” he said.