INEC moves to take action on Supreme Court ruling

• Studies CTC of apex court’s judgment . Lagos, Kano, Kaduna lead in voter register

• Explains immediate non-overhaul of election technology

From Romanus Ugwu, Abuja

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has begun studying the Certified True Copy (CTC) of the Supreme Court judgment on provisions governing political party membership registers and primaries to determine its next line of action ahead of the 2027 general elections.

INEC Chairman, Prof. Joash Amupitan, disclosed this at a world press conference and national stakeholders’ meeting in Abuja on Tuesday, saying the commission received the CTC that morning following complaints and enquiries about the implications of the ruling.

Amupitan said political parties, aggrieved aspirants and members of the National Assembly had drawn the commission’s attention to the September 24 judgment in INEC v. Zenith Labour Party, which affirmed the constitutionality of Section 77(5)–(7) of the Electoral Act 2026 and upheld its revised election timetable.

“We only received the certified true copy of this judgement this morning, and it is being reviewed,” he said.

The chairman said the commission would determine and announce the appropriate action after examining the judgment.

Amupitan also explained that his determination to overhaul election technology immediately had been constrained by the crowded electoral calendar. He identified the mode of results collation as a potential difference between the 2023 elections and the forthcoming polls, while pledging to leave INEC a stronger electoral umpire.

On party nominations, he said 18 of the country’s 22 registered political parties had submitted 36 presidential and vice-presidential candidates.

Accord, the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) and Youth Party did not nominate presidential candidates, while the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP) withdrew its presidential nomination during the substitution window.

He explained that parties submitted their candidate lists through the INEC Candidates Nomination Portal, supported by Form EC9 affidavits of constitutional compliance, in accordance with Section 29 of the Electoral Act 2026.

“To protect the integrity of party nominations and prevent unlawful exclusion or arbitrary candidate substitution, the commission implemented an administrative safeguard, which was the pre-uploading of candidate names onto the INEC Candidates Nomination Portal, strictly verified against INEC’s primary election monitoring reports and internal party appeal outcomes,” he said.

For the National Assembly elections, Amupitan said 21 parties sponsored 1,313 senatorial candidates and 3,547 House of Representatives candidates. Their personal particulars were published on August 1, while the final list was released on September 12, subject to court orders.

For the governorship and state assembly elections, 21 parties nominated 936 governorship and deputy governorship candidates and 9,692 state assembly candidates.

Their personal particulars were published on August 29, with the final list scheduled for publication on October 10.

Amupitan said INEC received 112 formal complaints over nominations, including allegations of unlawful withdrawal and substitution of candidates, typographical errors and other legal issues.

“All 112 formal complaints received from aspirants, candidates, and parties regarding the nomination process were investigated and resolved except those pending in the Court,” he said.

The chairman also appealed to the Federal Government to release the remaining tranche of the commission’s budgetary allocation to enable it to complete preparations for the elections.

He said funds already released had enabled INEC to meet obligations to international vendors, finance the production of critical election technology, upgrade infrastructure and sustain operational deployments nationwide.

“Executing a national election of this magnitude requires robust financial backing and fiscal discipline. The Federal Government has maintained its commitment to democratic governance through the timely release of statutory budgetary allocations to the Commission.

“Operating under a framework of transparent fiscal management, these funds have enabled us to meet international vendor obligations, finance the production of critical election technology, upgrade physical infrastructure and sustain multi-stakeholder operational deployments nationwide.

“However, we expect the prompt release of the remaining budget to ensure seamless execution of the remaining activities,” he said.

At the meeting, described by the commission as marking the 100-day countdown to the polls, Amupitan announced a national voter register of 103,428,715.

Lagos had the highest number of registered voters, with 7,488,633, followed by Kano with 6,570,276 and Kaduna with 4,662,640.

Ekiti had the lowest figure among the states, with 1,055,708, followed by Bayelsa with 1,200,691 and Yobe with 1,733,671.

The Federal Capital Territory had 1,732,043 registered voters, placing it below Yobe when the states and the FCT were considered together.

Other states with high voter populations included Katsina, 3,876,051; Rivers, 3,736,434; Oyo, 3,588,111; Delta, 3,525,988; Benue, 3,057,225; Ogun, 3,037,981; and Bauchi, 3,012,547. Gombe had 1,768,566 registered voters.

“Male voters account for 53,528,218, representing 51.75 per cent of the register, while female voters number 49,900,497, representing 48.25 per cent.

“The age profile shows that the register is dominated by voters aged 35 to 49 years, who account for 43,265,946 voters, or 41.83 per cent of the total,” he said.

Amupitan announced that the register would be displayed nationwide for public scrutiny from October 9 to 15, after which claims and objections would be addressed.

“In compliance with Section 19(1) of the Electoral Act 2026, the Register of Voters will be displayed for public scrutiny from October 9 to 15, this month, not later than 90 days before the general election. Claims and objections arising from the nationwide display at Registration Areas will be addressed thereafter,” he said.

Inspector General of Police, Olatunji Disu, represented by Francis Idu, assured foreign observers of their safety, saying the police had sufficient personnel and an election security plan to protect them.

“We have mapped out our strategy and we have more than enough manpower to protect all of them. Our election template will guarantee their security,” he said.

Disu disclosed that security conditions in Edo, Enugu, Taraba and Plateau, among other states, would be reviewed alongside areas described as ungoverned spaces to address concerns before the elections.

“Come December this year, we will do the review to ensure that any act of violence in the states will be curtailed and arrested. We will launch operation no electoral violence to discourage it in whatever form or shape during the election,” he said.

Amupitan said INEC would convene a meeting with security chiefs to review arrangements for the polls.

“We are planning to engage with the stakeholders so that all the stakeholders including the IGP, all the Service Chiefs and heads of other security agencies will be physically present so that we can sit down again and review our strategy concerning all these security concerns.”

He assured Nigerians that lessons from previous elections would guide the commission’s preparations.

“We have continued to improve our electoral management and we are determined to ensure that the 2027 elections meet the expectations of Nigerians.

“The lessons from the elections we have conducted will guide us as we prepare for the 2027 general elections. Our objective is to ensure that the process is credible, transparent and acceptable to Nigerians.

“Nigerians should be assured that INEC will do everything within its mandate to deliver free, fair, transparent and credible elections in 2027,” he said.

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