Comelec: 2023 BSKE officially done, canvassing in all barangays completed

The 2023 Barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan Elections (BSKE) is now officially done after the Commission on Elections (Comelec) completed the canvassing of ballots in all 42,001 barangays.

"100% complete voting and canvassing nationwide. No failure of elections," Comelec chairman George Garcia said in a Viber message to reporters.

All winners of the BSKE were also proclaimed except for those who were ordered suspended by the Comelec and those with tie votes as the electoral boards availed of the five-day notice rule, Garcia said.

The BSKE was held on October 30 except for seven barangays in Lanao del Sur and Samar, which held the elections the following day.

Garcia earlier explained that the election paraphernalia in the seven barangays did not arrive on time for the October 30 elections.

Despite reports of the occurrence of election-related violence, Garcia had earlier declared this year's BSKE "a victory of sorts," adding that no election had ever been perfect.

The Parish Pastoral Council for Responsible Voting (PPCRV) has found the BSKE "orderly and peaceful" outside the violence that affected some communities in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM).

However, the PPCRV, in an earlier statement, said it observed irregularities in the BSKE, including incidents of fake voters "with some voters arriving to find that others had already voted in their place."

In a virtual interview on Wednesday, Comelec spokesperson Rex Laudiangco said there was no failure of elections in BARMM.

Comelec regional director in BARMM Ray Sumalipao also reported that the BSKE has "concluded successfully, with no evidence of election failures.

The Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) earlier said winning candidates should assume office during a three-week transition period.—KBK, GMA Integrated News