(../../../../favicon_aje.ico) Philippines’ Muslim-majority Bangsamoro region votes for first parliament | Conflict News | Al Jazeera    (https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2026/9/14/philippines-muslim-majority-bangsamoro-region-votes-for-first-parliament)                                               (https://www.aljazeera.com/xml/rss/all.xml)  (https://www.aljazeera.com/amp/news/2026/9/14/philippines-muslim-majority-bangsamoro-region-votes-for-first-parliament)  (https://www.aljazeera.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/09/AP26256139332764-1789342518.jpg?resize=1920%2C1440)  (../../../../wp-content/uploads/2026/09/AP26256139332764-1789342518.jpg@resize=770,513&quality=80)     (https://cdn.cookielaw.org) (https://cdn.cookielaw.org) (https://cdn.cookielaw.org) (https://cdn.cookielaw.org/scripttemplates/otSDKStub.js) (https://www.google-analytics.com) (https://www.google-analytics.com) (https://www.google-analytics.com) (https://static.chartbeat.com/) (https://static.chartbeat.com/) (https://static.chartbeat.com/) (../../../../static/css/vendor~main~d08ff9cb.24bf1742.r2.chunk.css) (../../../../static/css/component~main~748942c6.6c6e15fe.r2.chunk.css) (../../../../static/css/component~main~b07b7304.e3bc53a0.r2.chunk.css) (../../../../static/css/component~main~6e6dca10.74fd263a.r2.chunk.css) (../../../../static/css/component~main~5db14389.c7afea12.r2.chunk.css) (../../../../static/media/Roboto-Bold.52bb58c8.woff2) (../../../../static/media/Roboto-Regular.c5bf51b6.woff2)  (../../../../static/css/vendor~aje/containers/home-page~components/video-article/videoPageDispatcher~containers/amp-live-blo~5f903362.2e08e417.r2.chunk.css)  (../../../../static/css/component~aje/containers/home-page~components/video-article/videoPageDispatcher~containers/amp-live-~41c72a2c.3f309873.r2.chunk.css)  (../../../../static/css/component~aje/containers/home-page~components/video-article/videoPageDispatcher~containers/amp-live-~06be7c11.0625e98d.r2.chunk.css)  (../../../../static/css/common~493df0b3.ec3ab9b5.r2.chunk.css)  (../../../../static/css/pages/article-page~493df0b3.accd71c7.r2.chunk.css)  (../../../../static/css/common~493df0b3.ec3ab9b5.r2.chunk.css)   Skip links (philippines-muslim-majority-bangsamoro-region-votes-for-first-parliament@traffic_source=rss.html#main-content-area) Skip to Content  (https://www.aljazeera.com/)          (https://www.aljazeera.com/video/live) play    Live    Sign up  Show navigation menu     Navigation menu (https://www.aljazeera.com/news/) News    Show more news sections  (https://www.aljazeera.com/africa/) Africa   (https://www.aljazeera.com/asia/) Asia   (https://www.aljazeera.com/us-canada/) US & Canada   (https://www.aljazeera.com/latin-america/) Latin America   (https://www.aljazeera.com/europe/) Europe   (https://www.aljazeera.com/asia-pacific/) Asia Pacific      (https://www.aljazeera.com/middle-east/) Middle East   (https://www.aljazeera.com/tag/explainer/) Explained   (https://www.aljazeera.com/sports) Sport   (https://www.aljazeera.com/opinion/) Opinion   (https://www.aljazeera.com/videos/) Video   More   Show more sections  (https://www.aljazeera.com/features/) Features   (https://www.aljazeera.com/economy/) Economy   (https://www.aljazeera.com/tag/human-rights/) Human Rights   (https://www.aljazeera.com/climate-crisis) Climate Crisis   (https://www.aljazeera.com/investigations/) Investigations   (https://www.aljazeera.com/interactives/) Interactives   (https://www.aljazeera.com/gallery/) In Pictures   (https://www.aljazeera.com/tag/science-and-technology/) Science & Technology   (https://www.aljazeera.com/audio/podcasts) Podcasts   (https://www.aljazeera.com/travel) Travel   (https://www.aljazeera.com/sponsored/) Sponsored Content        (https://www.aljazeera.com/video/live) play    Live    Click here to search search     Sign up        (https://www.aljazeera.com/news/) News |(https://www.aljazeera.com/tag/conflict/) Conflict   Philippines’ Muslim-majority Bangsamoro region votes for first parliament Deadly violence marred the elections one day before the polls opened in the southern Philippine region.   Listen   Listen (3 mins)       Save       Share Philippines’ Muslim-majority Bangsamoro region votes for first parliament on social media share-nodes    Share (https://www.facebook.com/sharer/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Faje.news%2F3h64el) facebook      (https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?text=Philippines%E2%80%99%20Muslim-majority%20Bangsamoro%20region%20votes%20for%20first%20parliament&source=sharethiscom&related=sharethis&via=AJEnglish&url=https%3A%2F%2Faje.news%2F3h64el) x    (whatsapp://send?text=https%3A%2F%2Faje.news%2F3h64el) whatsapp-stroke    (https://aje.news/3h64el)  copylink          google       Add Al Jazeera on Google  info      (Soldiers in camouflage uniforms stand at the roadside watching vehicles pass.)   Army soldiers check the flow of traffic along the highway in Marantao town, Lanao del Sur province, southern Philippines, on September 13, 2026 [Froilan Gallardo/AP]   (https://www.aljazeera.com/author/al_jazeera_staff_150119130629458)     By  (https://www.aljazeera.com/author/al_jazeera_staff_150119130629458) Al Jazeera Staff and AP   Published On 14 Sep 2026 14 Sep 2026    Voting is underway in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) in the southern Philippines in the first parliamentary elections since the region was established in 2019. Monday’s historic vote is seen as a crucial step towards self-governance after decades of rebellion and violence in the Muslim-majority region, where more than 2.3 million people are eligible to vote.        There are 80 seats up for grabs in the elections that will determine members of parliament, the region’s legislative body. These include 40 political party representatives, 32 district representatives and eight sectoral representatives. The region’s chief minister, who heads the executive branch, will be elected by parliament in its first session. Election officials said they were targeting a turnout of at least 80 percent after polling was postponed for several years. Al Jazeera’s Barnaby Lo, reporting from Marawi, said “voters are saying that this [election] has been a long time coming, and they just want to elect leaders who can bring lasting peace.”      However, deadly violence marred the elections one day before the polls opened. The chairman of the Commission on Elections, George Garcia, reported on Monday that Cotabato City had been put under the commission’s control after a shooting late on Sunday near a polling station at a school killed three people and injured 15. At another polling station, four people, including a police officer, sustained gunshot wounds just before 7am on Monday (23:00 GMT Sunday), authorities said. Advertisement    In a separate incident in the city, Garcia said a blast from an improvised bomb injured the person carrying the explosive, and a gun was fired but no one was hurt. The town of Maluso in Basilan was also put under the commission’s control after pre-shaded ballots were found in 36 out of 68 precincts. Garcia said he ordered the immediate reprinting of ballots for the affected precincts where voting would be delayed. Garcia pledged to charge those who attempt to sow violence or buy votes. “These elections stand on generations of Bangsamoro struggle for homeland, identity, and self-determination, in the face of dispossession, marginalisation, conflict and sacrifice,” he said in an earlier statement. “Elections in this part of the Philippines have been marred by violence for as long as I can remember. This is a region where guns are rampant and clan wars are fairly common,” said Al Jazeera’s Lo. “And so, despite a gun ban that’s been in effect for weeks, and despite very heavy police and military presence, we’ve seen a number of violent incidents.” Polling stations were due to close at 7pm local time (11:00 GMT), but Garcia said some would remain open until 9pm due to delayed openings. (Abdullah Macapaar, centre, along with some of the fiercest Muslim rebel commanders in the southern Philippines, takes his oath during a ceremony for the creation of the Bangsamoro Transition Authority (BTA) at the Presidential Palace in Manila, Philippines, on February 22, 2019)  Abdullah Macapaar, centre, along with some of the fiercest Muslim rebel commanders in the southern Philippines, takes his oath during a ceremony for the creation of the Bangsamoro Transition Authority (BTA) at the Presidential Palace in Manila, Philippines, on February 22, 2019 [Bullit Marquez/AP]  The election marks the end of the transition period under the Bangsamoro Transition Authority (BTA), an interim regional government appointed in 2019. Established under a (https://www.aljazeera.com/opinions/2026/9/13/bangsamoros-parliamentary-election-is-a-turning-point) 2014 peace deal , the BARMM aims for broader autonomy, with former Moro Islamic Liberation Front rebels agreeing to demobilise and giving up their goal of a separate Muslim state in the south of the largely Catholic country. Since the 1970s, about 150,000 people have died in the conflict. The area was once a haven for hardline groups but has seen a decline in violence.            aj-logo             aj-logo             aj-logo       Advertisement          About About   Show more  (https://www.aljazeera.com/about-us) About Us   (https://www.aljazeera.com/code-of-ethics/) Code of Ethics   (https://www.aljazeera.com/terms-and-conditions/) Terms and Conditions   (https://www.aljazeera.com/eu-eea-regulatory/) EU/EEA Regulatory Notice   (https://privacy.aljazeera.net/) Privacy Policy   (https://privacy.aljazeera.net/cookie/) Cookie Policy   (https://www.aljazeera.com/) Cookie Preferences    (https://trust.aljazeera.net/accessibility/) Accessibility Statement   (https://www.aljazeera.com/sitemap) Sitemap   (https://careers.aljazeera.net/) Work for us      Connect Connect   Show more  (https://network.aljazeera.net/en/contact?tid=6) Contact Us   (https://www.aljazeera.com/user-accounts-help) User Accounts Help   (https://commercial.aljazeera.net/) Advertise with us   (https://www.aljazeera.com/stay-connected) Stay Connected   (https://www.aljazeera.com/newsletters) Newsletters   (https://sat.aljazeera.net/en) Channel Finder   (https://www.aljazeera.com/schedule/) TV Schedule   (https://www.aljazeera.com/podcasts/) Podcasts   (https://webapps.aljazeera.net/aje/tips/) Submit a Tip   (https://www.aljazeera.com/sponsored) Paid Partner Content      Our Channels Our Channels   Show more  (http://aljazeera.net/) Al Jazeera Arabic   (https://www.aljazeera.com/) Al Jazeera English   (https://www.ajiunit.com/) Al Jazeera Investigative Unit   (https://www.aljazeeramubasher.net/) Al Jazeera Mubasher   (http://doc.aljazeera.net/) Al Jazeera Documentary   (http://balkans.aljazeera.net/) Al Jazeera Balkans   (http://ajplus.net/) AJ+      Our Network Our Network   Show more  (http://studies.aljazeera.net/en/) Al Jazeera Centre for Studies   (http://training.aljazeera.net/) Al Jazeera Media Institute   (http://learning.aljazeera.net/) Learn Arabic   (http://liberties.aljazeera.com/en) Al Jazeera Centre for Public Liberties & Human Rights   (http://forum.aljazeera.net/) Al Jazeera Forum   (https://hotels.aljazeera.net/en) Al Jazeera Hotel Partners        Follow Al Jazeera English: (https://www.facebook.com/aljazeera) facebook       (https://twitter.com/ajenglish) twitter     (https://www.youtube.com/aljazeeraenglish) youtube     (https://www.instagram.com/aljazeeraenglish/?hl=en) instagram-colored-outline                          (https://www.aljazeera.com/xml/rss/all.xml) rss     (https://bsky.app/profile/aljazeera.com) bluesky     (https://www.tiktok.com/@aljazeeraenglish) tiktok-colored-outline                  (Al Jazeera Media Network logo)   © 2026 Al Jazeera Media Network