INEC gets 4,800 claims, 600 objections on 103 million-name voter register
- INEC says it has received more than 4,800 claims and about 600 objections to the preliminary voter register.
- Chairman Joash Amupitan says the register, with over 103 million voters, will be cleaned up before December 15.
- INEC plans a nationwide mock accreditation in November to test BVAS and result transmission.
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has received more than 4,800 claims and about 600 objections to its preliminary voter register, as it works towards the 2027 general elections.
INEC Chairman Joash Amupitan, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, disclosed the figures on Friday in Abuja. He was receiving a pre-election fact-finding mission from the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), led by former Sierra Leone Vice-President Victor Bockarie Foh.
The claims were lodged at registration areas where the register was displayed, and the figures were current as of Thursday. Amupitan said most of the claims were corrections and other minor matters.
The objections came through electoral officers and Resident Electoral Commissioners. Amupitan said publishing the register online had also helped confirm some of the complaints already received.
He said the register currently holds more than 103 million registered voters, a figure he described as huge. He promised the discrepancies would be corrected so the register is properly cleaned up before the final one is certified on December 15, 2026.
What happens next
INEC plans a mock accreditation exercise across the country some time in November. It will test voter accreditation and the transmission of results in all states at once, to avoid the technical problems that marred the 2023 elections.
The commission said it will use the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) for fingerprint and facial recognition. It has also introduced a new platform, eEC8A, so results are authenticated at the polling unit before they reach the INEC Result Viewing Portal (IReV).
Amupitan said the commission has completed nine of the 14 major milestones in its revised timetable. Readiness tours have covered Lagos, Kaduna, Enugu and Gombe, with Port Harcourt next and the North-Central zone after that.
He said the tours showed some areas need more staff and materials than planned because of difficult terrain and security concerns. INEC is working with the police, the Department of State Services, the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps and the Armed Forces to secure polling units and protect ad-hoc staff, including National Youth Service Corps members.
The presidential and National Assembly elections are set for Saturday, January 16, 2027. The governorship and state assembly elections will follow on Saturday, February 6, 2027.
On welfare, Amupitan said INEC has secured approval for a new salary structure for its staff, the Consolidated Election Management Body Salary Structure, and a 150 per cent increase in state operational overheads. He argued that well-paid staff are less likely to be tempted by politicians.
He also said the commission has conducted four off-cycle elections and 16 by-elections since he took office on October 23, 2025. He cited the Anambra governorship election, concluded within a day, as a lesson applied in the Federal Capital Territory, Ekiti and Osun elections.
Amupitan told the ECOWAS team that INEC has no candidate and no political party, and that its only loyalty is to the rule of law and the will of Nigerian voters. He welcomed ECOWAS observers, saying the commission welcomes scrutiny.
