Voter Education as a Democratic Pillar in the Philippines: A Comparative Analysis of the Voter Education Seminars organized by the COMELEC and NAMFREL and its Effects on the Electoral Participation of Youth Voters

Abstract

This study investigates the voter education seminars (VES) organized by the Commission on Elections (COMELEC) and the National Citizens’ Movement for Free Elections (NAMFREL) and their effects on the electoral participation of the youth voters. It aims to address the gap in the lack of studies surrounding the conduct of voter education initiatives in the Philippines and its supposed benefits in empowering the electorate, as evidenced by several international studies. In line with this, the study formulated three main objectives which are to; 1) provide descriptions of the design and content of the VES organized by COMELEC and NAMFREL, 2) compare and contrast the effects of these seminars to the electoral participation of the youth voters, and 3) examine its implication to their perception of the conduct of voter education initiatives in the Philippines. The study employed qualitative comparative analysis as its research design and utilized the voter engagement and civic voluntarism models as its theoretical basis. To fulfill the objectives, the study utilized purposive sampling and gathered eight (8) youth voters as respondents who all underwent in-depth interviews conducted through Zoom. Key informants from both organizations were also in-depth interviewed to attain the first research objective. Data gathered from the interviews are then analyzed using reflexive thematic analysis. The researchers developed four primary themes in this study. The first and second themes described and presented the commonalities and differences in the design and content of the voter education seminars and workshops organized by COMELEC and NAMFREL. The third theme revealed the understanding of the youth voters of the topics discussed in the VES they have attended. The last theme, meanwhile, uncovered the benefits of voter education initiatives in the Philippines based on the views and perceptions of the young voters after attending the VES of either organization. Given these findings, the researchers concluded that voter education seminars affect the electoral participation and knowledge of the youth voters. The study also highly recommends the more frequent implementation and institutionalization of voter education activities in the Philippines given its observed positive implications in strengthening the democratic pillars of the country.