06/10/2026
🎯✨ The Independent National Electoral Commission has announced that Nigeria’s National Register of Voters has risen to more than 103 million ahead of the 2027 general elections.
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‎INEC Chairman, Prof. Joash Amupitan, SAN, disclosed this on Monday at a strategic workshop for media executives organised by INEC in collaboration with Development Alternatives Incorporated (DAI) and the Nigerian Guild of Editors (NGE) in Abuja.
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‎The workshop, held at BON Hotel Octagon, Jahi District, Abuja, was themed “Strengthening Democracy Through Partnership Among Editors, Civil Society and Electoral Institutions.”
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‎Amupitan said the figure followed the conclusion of the Commission’s three-phase Continuous Voter Registration (CVR), which attracted more than 10.6 million new applicants.
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‎He added that INEC had completed the public display of the Preliminary Register for claims and objections, as well as the final Automated Biometric Identification System (ABIS) cleanup of the voter register.
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‎The INEC chairman announced that nationwide collection of Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs) will commence on Friday, October 9, 2026, urging eligible Nigerians to participate in the process.
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‎According to him, the exercise is a major step towards ensuring that eligible citizens are able to participate in the 2027 elections.
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‎Amupitan also reaffirmed INEC’s commitment to improving the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) and the INEC Result Viewing Portal (IReV) to strengthen the transparency of the electoral process.
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‎He stressed that technological improvements alone would not be enough to guarantee credible elections, noting that public trust remains central to electoral integrity.
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‎“The ultimate arbiter of electoral integrity is public trust,” Amupitan said.
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‎The INEC chairman called for closer collaboration between the electoral body, media organisations, civil society groups and other stakeholders ahead of the 2027 elections.
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‎He said INEC was willing to listen to concerns from editors, address operational challenges and provide timely information to prevent misinformation from spreading due to communication gaps.
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‎Amupitan also urged news organisations to establish digital fact-verification desks, while promising that INEC would provide editors with direct access to verify field incidents, logistical developments and security reports in real time.
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‎He further proposed a sustained editorial feedback mechanism between INEC and the Nigerian Guild of Editors to monitor the Commission’s preparations and address emerging challenges throughout the 2027 election cycle.
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‎Speaking earlier, NGE President, Eze Anaba, described the workshop as timely as Nigeria moves closer to another general election.
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‎Anaba said elections go beyond the casting of ballots, stressing that citizens must have confidence that their votes will count and that electoral institutions will operate fairly and professionally.
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‎He urged editors and journalists to uphold accuracy, fairness, balance and public interest in their coverage of the 2027 elections.
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‎The NGE president also called for improved access to credible and timely information from INEC, noting that effective communication between the electoral body and the media would be crucial to combating misinformation and strengthening public confidence in the electoral process.
