Ahead of the 2027 general elections, Nigeria’s National Register of Voters has risen to more than 103 million following the completion of the three-phase Continuous Voter Registration (CVR) exercise.
The Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Prof. Joash Amupitan, SAN, made the disclosure on Monday in Abuja during a strategic workshop for media executives organized in collaboration with Development Alternatives Incorporated (DAI) and the Nigerian Guild of Editors (NGE).
Speaking on the theme, “Strengthening Democracy Through Partnership Among Editors, Civil Society and Electoral Institutions,” Amupitan revealed that the registration drive attracted over 10.6 million new applicants, with the public display for claims and objections as well as the final Automated Biometric Identification System (ABIS) cleanup now fully concluded.
Amupitan also announced that nationwide collection of Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs) will commence on Friday, October 9, 2026, urging all eligible citizens to pick up their cards. He emphasized that the Commission is working to ensure a transparent, technology-driven, and credible election cycle, committing to continuous improvements on the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) and the INEC Result Viewing Portal (IReV) so that every valid vote counts.
Highlighting public trust as the ultimate arbiter of electoral integrity, the INEC Chairman called for a deeper partnership with newsrooms and civil society organizations. He urged media houses to establish digital fact-verification desks and promised direct access for editors to verify field developments in real time, proposing a sustained feedback mechanism with the NGE throughout the 2027 election cycle to prevent misinformation.
In his opening remarks, the President of the Nigerian Guild of Editors, Mr. Eze Anaba, described the workshop as timely, noting that democratic elections rely heavily on public confidence in the fairness and professionalism of electoral institutions.
He urged editors to uphold rigorous accuracy, balance, and the public interest, while reiterating the need for unhindered access to timely information from the electoral umpire.
