Dagupan city: The Commission on Elections (Comelec) is set to conduct its inaugural mall voting for the Barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan Elections (BSKE) in the Ilocos Region, specifically in Dagupan City. This initiative will take place at the NEPO Mall, which has been approved as a voting center after meeting the necessary requirements.

According to Philippines News Agency, Comelec Ilocos Region acting director, lawyer Reddy Balarbar, stated in an interview that the NEPO Mall has fulfilled the conditions set by the commission, including ensuring that the mall's owners and their relatives up to the fourth civil degree of consanguinity are not involved in politics. The facility has also met the space requirements and will provide the venue at no cost to Comelec.

The memorandum of agreement between Comelec and NEPO Mall was signed on Thursday. Balarbar noted that the voting will take place on the mall's ground floor, with directional signs to aid voters. The exploration of mall voting has been a long-term consideration due to the numerous malls in the Ilocos Region, although the process and requirements are stringent.

Balarbar expressed the potential for more malls to adopt this voting method in the future, emphasizing the convenience it offers to voters. Dagupan City election officer, lawyer Michael Franks Sarmiento, shared that 1,094 out of approximately 19,000 registered voters in Barangay Pantal will vote at the mall during the BSKE. The NEPO Mall will serve as an additional voting center alongside two existing ones in Barangay Pantal, maintaining the same voting hours.