MANILA, Philippines — After four postponements, the first parliamentary elections in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) will finally be held on Sept. 14.

Here are the key things to know about the elections:

The BARMM parliamentary elections

The elections will determine the members of the Bangsamoro Parliament, the legislative body of the BARMM established under the Bangsamoro Organic Law, or Republic Act (RA) No. 11054.

President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. said last month that the elections are crucial to the development of the region, which he described as a product of a decadeslong peace process that began in 1968.

Marcos said the participation of former secessionists in the elections, including through campaigning, shows that they have chosen the political process over armed struggle to pursue peace and progress in the region.

Why were the elections postponed?

RA No. 11054, which established the BARMM in 2019, initially scheduled the first parliamentary elections for May 2022, when the mandate of the Bangsamoro Transition Authority (BTA) was expected to end.

READ: On the September BARMM elections

The elections were later moved to May 2025, then to Oct. 13 of the same year under RA No. 12123.

RA No. 12317 eventually reset the elections to the second Monday of September, which falls on Sept. 14 this year.

RELATED STORY: Zubiri launches book on Bangsamoro Organic Law creation

Sen. Juan Miguel Zubiri, the principal author of the law that created the BARMM, earlier said the latest postponement was necessary to give the region more time for institution-building, address governance limitations and ensure a smoother transition.

Seats at stake

Under the Bangsamoro Organic Law, signed by then-President Rodrigo Duterte, voters will elect 80 members of Parliament:

• 40 party representatives
• 32 district representatives
• Eight sectoral representatives

The sectoral seats are reserved for women, youth, traditional leaders, ulama or Islamic scholars, settler communities and other sectors.

Who can voters choose?

The parliamentary system is designed to provide voters with different forms of representation, according to the BTA.

On election day, voters will make eight choices: one regional political party, one district representative and six sectoral representatives.

For the regional parliamentary political party, voters will choose a party rather than an individual candidate.

The 40 regional party-representative seats will be distributed based on each party’s share of the vote, with the party’s nominees filling the seats it wins.

For the parliamentary district representative, voters will choose one individual candidate to represent their parliamentary district.

“Because the Bangsamoro has 32 district seats, the candidates on the ballot will depend on the voter’s registered district,” the BTA said.

For the sectoral representatives, voters will choose two representatives for settler communities and one each for women, youth, traditional leaders and ulama.

More than 2 million voters

Based on data from the Commission on Elections (Comelec), 2.393 million voters are registered for the BARMM elections.

They will cast their votes through 5,212 clustered precincts in 1,186 voting centers across the region.

In January, the BTA passed Parliament Bill No. 415, a measure providing for the apportionment of parliamentary district representative seats in the BARMM.

The measure established the region’s 32 parliamentary districts, clearing the final legal requirement for the elections to proceed.

Last year, the BTA failed to pass the redistricting bill despite an earlier commitment to do so by Dec. 31.

READ: Bangsamoro parliament fails to enact new redistricting law

The measure was needed to comply with a Supreme Court decision that, without an approved districting framework, the Comelec could not proceed with election preparations.

Parliament Bill No. 415 was approved on third and final reading before dawn on Jan. 13 following a special session that began Jan. 12. It received 48 votes in favor, 19 against and four abstentions.

The recent postponement

Two weeks after the BTA approved the districting measure, the Comelec postponed the March 30, 2026, Bangsamoro Parliamentary Election.

“Legally and operationally, we can no longer hold the BPE on March 30,” Comelec Chairman George Garcia said. “Operationally, we can no longer afford the one month and two weeks to hold the BPE.”

Marcos eventually signed into law the bill resetting the first regular elections in the BARMM to the second Monday of September.

READ: Marcos signs law resetting BARMM elections

The Office of the Presidential Adviser on Peace, Reconciliation and Unity commended the BTA for passing the new districting law, calling it a major step toward holding the region’s first regular parliamentary elections.

“The passage of Parliament Bill No. 415 in a special session on January 12 is seen as a major step by the BTA towards establishing a fully functioning, representative, and democratic government in the Bangsamoro, anchored on the provisions of the Comprehensive Agreement on the Bangsamoro (CAB),” it said.

Then-Presidential Peace Adviser Carlito G. Galvez Jr. said the approval of a legally compliant redistricting law reflected the BTA’s resolve to uphold democratic principles, ensure inclusive representation and realize the aspirations of Bangsamoro communities for self-governance.

“The law’s passage aligns with the peace, reconciliation and unity agenda of the Marcos administration, and its commitment to uphold its deliverables under all signed Bangsamoro peace agreements,” he said.

Government never lost hope

Despite the postponements, Marcos said that “the government never lost hope and remains fully committed to supporting this democratic exercise,” adding that “we are prepared for the first parliamentary elections in the BARMM.”

He made the statement during the opening ceremony of the 2026 National Peace Consciousness Month at the Ceremonial Hall of Malacañan Palace.

The monthlong observance commemorates the 30th anniversary of the signing of the 1996 Final Peace Agreement with the Moro National Liberation Front, the 40th anniversary of the 1986 Mount Data Peace Accord and the signing of the Agreement on the Fulfillment of the Mount Data Peace Accord with the Cordillera Bodong Administration-Cordillera People’s Liberation Army.

“Be assured that this Administration will do everything within our mandate to ensure that the elections are safe, peaceful, and credible. We will protect the right of every Bangsamoro voter to cast a ballot freely and without fear,” Marcos said.

READ: Marcos vows safe, peaceful, credible BARMM polls on Sept. 14

He urged BARMM voters to show that the region’s future is shaped by their voices, choices and hopes for their communities.

Officials elected in the BARMM parliamentary elections will serve from noon Oct. 30, 2026, to June 30, 2031.

Beginning in 2031, elected officials will assume office at noon June 30 following their election.

RA No. 12317 states that, to synchronize the BARMM parliamentary elections with the national and local polls, regular elections for the Bangsamoro Government will be held on the second Monday of May 2031 and every three years thereafter. /dm — with reports from Luisa Cabato