BARMM Parliament okays long-delayed law, sets 32-district map for polls

COTABATO CITY, Philippines – The Bangsamoro Parliament on Tuesday, January 13, passed a long-delayed districting measure needed for the Muslim-majority region’s first parliamentary elections. 

The measure, BTA Bill No. 415, officially called the Bangsamoro Parliamentary Districts Act of 2025, was approved at 12:33 am following a 10-hour special session that began on Monday, January 12.

Parliament Bill No. 415 was approved on third and final reading by nominal vote: 48 members voting yes, 19 voting no, and four abstaining, ending a period of uncertainty over the allocation of parliamentary seats in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM).

With Sulu province and its parliamentary district seats excluded from the BARMM due to a 2024 Supreme Court ruling, the measure redraws the region’s map to create 32 single-member parliamentary districts. Each district is required to be contiguous, compact, adjacent, and have a minimum population of 100,000.

The bill’s passage comes after delays in late 2025 that prompted the Commission on Elections (Comelec) last December to suspend the filing of certificates of candidacy in the Bangsamoro region. Filing had been put on hold because there was no valid districting law in place following another SC ruling in 2025 that struck down the region’s earlier redistricting laws as unconstitutional. 

An SC ruling in late September 2025, striking down BARMM’s earlier redistricting laws as unconstitutional, postponed the Bangsamoro parliamentary elections from October 2025 to March 30, 2026.

The new regional law, authored by Bangsamoro Transition Authority Member Naguib Sinarimbo and nine other regional lawmakers, was chosen from six competing districting bills. 

Under the new measure, the region is divided as follows:

• Lanao del Sur, including Marawi City: 9 seats
• Maguindanao del Norte: 5 seats
• Maguindanao del Sur: 5 seats
• Basilan: 4 seats
• Tawi-Tawi: 4 seats
• Cotabato City: 3 seats
• Special Geographic Area (SGA): 2 seats
  

Lawmakers from the island provinces of Basilan and Tawi-Tawi pushed for greater representation, citing the exit of Sulu and the resulting shift in power toward mainland provinces like Lanao del Sur and Maguindanao del Sur and Maguindanao del Norte. 

While some dissenters felt the allocation remained skewed, the majority ultimately voted to pass the measure to ensure the democratic process could move forward.

According to officials, the measure is intended to ensure fair representation and bring the region’s electoral framework into line with the Bangsamoro Organic Law, national statutes, and the Constitution. 

BARMM interim Chief Minister Abdulraof Macacua had certified the bill as urgent so that election preparations could resume without further delays.

With the boundaries now set, the Comelec is expected to finalize precinct lists and open the filing of certificates of candidacy for the 32 district representative seats. 

These representatives will join 40 party-list representatives and eight sectoral representatives to form the first 80-member regular Bangsamoro Parliament, clearing the way for the region’s inaugural parliamentary elections. – Rappler.com