Bangsamoro vote closes after five killed

Polls closed on Monday in the Philippines' Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao after election-day violence left five people dead and raised security concerns around the region's first parliamentary vote.

More than two million voters were eligible to choose 80 parliament seats that had previously been filled by appointees. Canvassing was underway on Monday evening, though officials had not said when final tallies would be available.

The parliamentary election was the culmination of a long peace process that began in the late 1990s and established the autonomous Muslim region in the country's far south.

Gunfire erupted outside a polling station at a school in Cotabato before polls opened, killing three people and wounding 15 others. Police chief Jibin Bongcayao said the shooting happened just before midnight as members of rival factions jostled to cast their votes first.

Bongcayao said the men belonged to parties that emerged from a split in the Moro Islamic Liberation Front, the group that spent decades fighting Manila for regional autonomy in the predominantly Catholic country.

Authorities said four people, including a police officer, were shot at another polling station just before 7:00 am. One of them later died. Another man died after an improvised explosive device he was carrying exploded, authorities said.

The violence led the elections commission to take direct control of law enforcement in Cotabato for the duration of the election. More than 20,000 security personnel had been deployed across voting areas, with quick response teams set up to address possible violence.

Election commission chief George Garcia said he was certain there would be “no failure of the election” despite the incidents. Before polls closed, he said voters had shown they were determined to cast ballots despite shootings, fistfights and other trouble.

Officials declined to estimate turnout, but had previously predicted “at least 80 percent”.

In Basilan province, voters in one town will be asked to vote again on Tuesday after ballots with “pre-shaded” boxes next to some candidates' names were discovered.