SEVERAL youth organizations filed a petition before the Commission on Elections to extend the deadline of voter registration for the 2022 elections.

Representatives from Akbayan Youth, the First Time Voters’ Network and the Center for Youth Advocacy and Networking submitted a letter-petition signed by more than 60 organizations, requesting the poll body to extend the voter registration until January 8, 2022.

Akbayan Spokesman RJ Naguit said that the pandemic has “robbed so much” and that “the Comelec should not allow the pandemic to rob young people of their right to register and vote.”

Before submitting their letter to Comelec, the group held a protest on Tuesday.

In addition, the youth organizations urged the country’s coronavirus task force to declare voter registration a mandatory activity.

“If we want a stronger voter turnout and a more representative picture of the elections, an extended period for registration is not optional, it is essential,” Naguit said.