INEC Targets Over 100m Voters Ahead of 2027 Elections

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has projected that the number of registered voters in Nigeria will exceed 100 million ahead of the 2027 general elections.

The National Commissioner and Chairman of the Information and Voter Education Committee (IVEC), Mohammed Haruna, disclosed this on Tuesday in Abuja at a joint implementation meeting of the Departments of Voter Education and Publicity (VEP) and Gender and Inclusivity (G&I).

The meeting was convened to develop a communication and inclusivity roadmap for the 2027 elections and ensure effective voter mobilisation and participation across the country.

Haruna said the existing voter register, which stood at more than 93 million, was expected to cross the 100 million mark once the recently concluded nationwide Continuous Voter Registration (CVR) exercise was finalised.

He noted that the projected figure would further reinforce Nigeria’s position as Africa’s largest electoral democracy.

With 151 days to the first phase of the 2027 elections, Haruna charged INEC information officers to intensify publicity and voter education, stressing the importance of reaching all eligible citizens.

“Our job is to give the widest and most effective publicity to all five sets of elections to mobilise all Nigerians of voting age to choose their leaders. This job is at once simple and complex,” he said.

Haruna said effective communication would become more demanding with a voting population of more than 100 million, urging officers to improve their professional skills and deepen their knowledge of the legal framework governing elections.

He said INEC officials must communicate in simple and civil language while maintaining a sound understanding of the Constitution, electoral laws and the commission’s guidelines.

He also urged them to familiarise themselves with other relevant legislation, including the Freedom of Information Act and the Data Protection Act.

According to him, the commission must build on the experience of recent off-cycle elections, including the Osun governorship poll, to deliver what he described as the freest and most credible general elections in the country’s history.

The Chief Press Secretary to the INEC Chairman, Adedayo Oketola, said the commission under its Chairman, Prof. Joash Amupitan, remained committed to credible and inclusive elections and would implement the outcomes of the meeting.

Oketola described the meeting as timely, saying the VEP and G&I departments constituted the commission’s “human face and voice”, despite the importance of technology and logistics to election management.

“You build public trust, simplify complex procedures, and ensure that no eligible citizen is left behind,” he said.

He, however, identified misinformation and disinformation as major threats to voter confidence and participation ahead of 2027.

Oketola said the commission would need to move beyond conventional announcement-based publicity to sustained civic education that explains electoral processes and technologies to voters.

“The antidote to disinformation is proactive, factual, and continuous public engagement,” he said.

He added that INEC’s communication strategy must help voters understand technologies such as the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) and the INEC Results Viewing Portal (IReV), while also strengthening confidence in the integrity of the ballot.

On inclusivity, Oketola said the commission would continue to promote access for persons with disabilities, women, youths and elderly voters.

He said measures including the deployment of Braille ballot guides and magnifying glasses, priority queues for vulnerable voters and increased youth participation through CVR would be strengthened ahead of the 2027 elections.

Earlier, the Director of Voter Education and Publicity, GVictoria Eta-Messi, said the success of voter sensitisation at the grassroots depended largely on the capacity and effectiveness of heads of VEP departments in the states.

She said the meeting was designed to provide a common direction for the implementation of voter education and inclusivity programmes nationwide.

“The off-cycle governorship elections are out of the way, and what lies ahead is the 2027 general election. Going by the line of activities of both departments, this meeting takes precedence and sets the tone for what lies ahead,” Eta-Messi said.

She explained that participants would be taken through commission-approved activities and implementation strategies, with emphasis on timelines and expected outcomes.

Heads of the VEP and G&I departments from the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory attended the meeting.