Duplicating 4-page VIS for 2025 polls looks impossible – Comelec
Commission on Elections Chairman George Erwin Garcia (INQUIRER file photo / NIÑO JESUS ORBETA)
MANILA, Philippines — Replicating the four-page voter information sheet (VIS) for the May 2025 elections will be impossible despite its simple layout, Commission on Elections (Comelec) Chairman George Erwin Garcia said on Wednesday.
The Comelec began the nationwide distribution of the VIS, where every registered voter will receive a copy.
When asked to ensure the authenticity of the VIS if there should be cases of layout replication, Garcia said that the VIS would only be distributed by Comelec-accredited emergency job workers.
READ: Every voter to get voter information sheet for 2025 polls — Comelec
He also shared that the impossibility of replicating the sheets could be attributed to the difficulty of obtaining information from the poll body.
“We believe all the information should be accurate if you produce a four-page copy. You should get a list of all details from the Comelec,” Garcia told reporters in Filipino in an interview.
The four-page VIS contains a voter’s name, address, precinct number, voting reminders, local and national candidates, and party-list groups.
“It seems difficult to get such details. It may be possible to make one copy, but if you make so many pages, it all seems impossible,” Garcia said.
Sanctions for possible replication
Garcia also said that the poll body can penalize the duplication of the VIS as it counts as a pre-election offense under Section 261 of the Omnibus Election Code.
READ: Voter info sheets not for impeachment, people’s initiative — Garcia
He also advised voters to ask for identification upon distribution of the VIS. He added that the distribution will be done on a house-to-house basis to properly reach every voter.
He reiterated that the signature required from voters upon receiving the VIS will not be used for people’s initiative or impeachment of an individual.
He clarified that the signatures would be necessary to prove that the voter received the copy and the job workers were able to perform their duties.
