Voting 233 against 0 and one abstention, the House of Representatives on Tuesday approved on third and final reading a bill declaring the national election day as a regular non-working holiday.

House Bill (HB) No. 8392 declares that “every national election shall be a regular non-working holiday to incentivize the electorate who exercise their democratic right of suffrage.”

It defines a “national election” to include plebiscites, referenda, people’s initiatives, recall elections, special elections, and other processes of voting of a similar nature which are national in scope.

The bill would amend Executive Order (EO) No. 292, otherwise known as the Administrative Code of 1987, which enumerates “regular holidays and nationwide special days.”

It includes in the enumeration “National Election Day – Day designated by law for the holding of a national election.”

In a statement, House Majority Leader Ferdinand Alexander “Sandro” Marcos of Ilocos Norte, one of the bill’s authors, said making a national election day a regular non-working holiday would give voters ample time to exercise their right of suffrage.

“This proposed law would free them from work-related concerns and allow them to focus on exercising their right to vote wisely,” he said. (PNA)