Nigeria’s election commission on Wednesday warned that delays in amending the Electoral Act could affect aspects of the timetable for the 2027 general elections, while assuring voters that it remains prepared to conduct the polls.
Independent National Electoral Commission Chairman Prof. Joash Amupitan (SAN) raised the concern during the commission’s first quarterly consultative meeting with civil society organisations in Abuja.
Amupitan said INEC had completed its election timetable and schedule of activities based on the current legal framework but noted that changes arising from amendments to the Electoral Act could require adjustments.
“While we have made our submissions to the National Assembly, the passage of the amendment may have implications for certain items in our timetable,” he said. “However, for now, the commission has no choice but to operate within the framework of the subsisting Electoral Act.”
He urged lawmakers to expedite work on the amendment to provide certainty ahead of the 2027 elections.
“We seek your support in urging the National Assembly to speed up work on the amendment of the Electoral Act,” Amupitan said.
Despite the uncertainty, he said INEC was fully prepared for the polls and announced plans to conduct a nationwide voter revalidation exercise before 2027.
“A credible register of voters remains the bedrock of free, fair and transparent elections,” he said. “Accordingly, the commission will embark on a nationwide voter revalidation exercise ahead of the 2027 general election.”
Amupitan also called on civil society groups to intensify voter mobilisation in the Federal Capital Territory ahead of the Area Council elections scheduled for Feb. 21, 2026, particularly encouraging residents to collect their Permanent Voter Cards.
“The ongoing PVC distribution in the FCT will end on Feb. 10, 2026, and we do not want anyone to be disenfranchised,” he said.
He urged civil society organisations to monitor political parties and promote peaceful participation, warning against hate speech, vote buying, misinformation, disinformation and election-related violence.
Providing an update on preparations for the FCT polls, Amupitan said 1,680,315 registered voters would vote across 2,822 polling units in the six area councils of Abaji, Abuja Municipal Area Council, Bwari, Gwagwalada, Kuje and Kwali. He said 570 candidates would contest chairmanship, vice-chairmanship and councillorship positions.
He added that INEC had concluded the recruitment and training of ad hoc staff and was configuring Bimodal Voter Accreditation System devices for voter accreditation and result upload to the INEC Result Viewing portal.
Amupitan also confirmed that bye-elections would be held the same day in the Ahoada East II and Khana II state constituencies in Rivers State, as well as the Kano Municipal and Ungogo state constituencies in Kano State.
On Tuesday, the House of Representatives rejected claims that the National Assembly was deliberately delaying the Electoral Act Amendment Bill. The chairman of the House Committee on Electoral Matters, Adebayo Balogun, said the delay was procedural and that work on the bill was ongoing in both chambers.
“The Senate is in session, considering the bill,” Balogun disclosed that “Hopefully, the harmonisation will be completed by next week.”
