172 barangays in WV classified as election hotspots

A total of 172 barangays in Western Visayas have been classified by the Commisison on Elections (COMELEC) as hotspots for the October 30 barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan elections.

Of the number, six barangays are under the “Yellow” category, 163 under the “Orange” category and 3 under the “Red” category.

The province and city of Iloilo have the most number of election hotspots at 93, followed by Negros Occidental, including Bacolod City, 51; Capiz, 14; Antique, 12; and Aklan, 2.

Guimaras does not have a barangay that is considered a hotspot.

According to COMELEC-6, the three areas under Category Red are in Negros Occidental.

Lawyer Dennis Ausan, COMELEC-6 director, said the number of hotspots in the region may still change in the coming days.

Yellow refers to areas that have a history of election-related incidents in the last elections, possible employment of partisan armed groups, the occurrence of politically motivated election-related incidents and had been previously declared under COMELEC control.

Orange, meanwhile, means areas of immediate concern where there is a serious armed threat; while Red means areas of grave concern, which exhibit combined factors under the yellow category with serious armed threats that may warrant the motu proprio (on its own) declaration of COMELEC control.IMT