Manila, March 19 -- The Commission on Elections (Comelec) on Tuesday released an initial list of 1,619 areas of concern for the May 12 midterm elections.

The list is divided into four categories -- "red", "orange", "yellow", and "green".

Thirty-six areas are under the "red" category or areas with serious armed threats and history of election-related incidents, while 156 areas are under the "orange" category or areas with serious armed threats.

However, the number of "red" and "orange" areas so far are less than the recorded figure in January this year --177 "red" areas and 177 "orange" areas.

Under the "red" category, 30 are in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) which include 20 towns in Lanao del Sur, nine in...