INEC Says Nigeria's Voter Register Hits 103 Million, PVC Collection Starts October 9
- INEC Chairman Prof. Joash Amupitan announced that Nigeria's National Register of Voters crossed the 103 million mark after the CVR exercise and final biometric cleanup
- INEC revealed it acquired 57,000 new BVAS devices ahead of the 2027 general elections, with upgrades to prevent accreditation bypass and manual manipulation
- The commission disclosed a coalition with the Ministry of Justice and anti-graft agencies to track illegal campaign spending and prosecute vote-buying offenders
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Nigeria's total voter register has crossed 103 million following the conclusion of a three-phase Continuous Voter Registration exercise and a final biometric data cleanup, the Independent National Electoral Commission announced on October 5, 2026.
INEC Chairman Prof. Joash Amupitan made the disclosure during a keynote address at a One-Day Strategic Workshop for Editors, jointly organised by the Nigerian Guild of Editors and the commission in Abuja.
Source: Facebook
Amupitan said the three phases of the CVR exercise recorded 10,772,421 new registrations, pending verification by the Automated Biometric Identification System. After that ABIS cleanup was completed, the register crossed a major threshold.
"Following the conclusion of our three-phase Continuous Voter Registration (CVR) exercise, which captured over 10.6 million new applicants, and the completion of the public display of the Preliminary Register for claims and objections, our Voter Register Department has completed the final Automated Biometric Identification System (ABIS) cleanup. Nigeria's National Register of Voters is now over 103 million," Amupitan declared.
INEC had first signalled it was targeting the 100 million mark in August, when its National Commissioner for Information and Voter Education, Mohammed Haruna, said the register, then at over 93 million, was expected to surpass that figure once the CVR exercise wrapped up.
PVC collection and 2027 election preparations
Amupitan told the workshop that nationwide collection of Permanent Voters' Cards would begin on Friday, October 9, 2026, adding that Phase 1 PVCs had already been processed and sent to all local government centres ahead of that date. He called on the media to help inform citizens about where to collect their cards and encourage them to do so without delay.
The INEC chairman also revealed that the commission had procured 57,000 new Bimodal Voter Accreditation System devices in readiness for the 2027 polls. He said the devices had undergone software hardening, battery optimisation, and biometric calibration to block accreditation bypass and remove the possibility of manual interference.
"We have instituted hardware, software, and cybersecurity enhancements across our technological architecture. We have acquired 57,000 new BVAS for optimal performance. The devices have undergone extensive software hardening, battery optimisation, and biometric calibration to prevent accreditation bypass and eliminate manual manipulation," the INEC chairman said.
The upgrades are aimed at securing the January 16, 2027 Presidential and National Assembly elections and the February 6, 2027 Governorship and State Houses of Assembly polls.
INEC takes firm stance on vote-buying
Amupitan warned that the commission had formed a coalition with the Federal Ministry of Justice, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission, and the Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit to combat vote-buying. He said joint financial monitoring teams would be deployed to track illegal campaign spending and conduct undercover surveillance at polling units.
"The integrity of the ballot box is fatally compromised when a citizen's vote is treated as a commodity for sale," Amupitan said, adding that any party or candidate caught buying votes would "face immediate arrest and prosecution under the Electoral Act 2026."
"Elections must be decided by the conviction of the voter, not the depth of a candidate's pocket," he added.
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Source: Legit.ng
