2027 Election Will Reflect Nigerians’ Sovereign Will, Says INEC

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), has assured Nigerians that the 2027 general election will reflect the sovereign will of voters.

INEC Chairman, Prof. Joash Amupitan, gave the assurance on Tuesday when the African Union Pre-Election and Needs Assessment Mission visited the commission in Abuja.

Amupitan, who was represented by National Commissioner Rhoda Gumus, said the commission would remain independent, neutral and professional throughout the electoral process.

He said administrative decisions would be guided by the law, while technology would be deployed to strengthen transparency and public confidence.

“The final outcome of the 2027 General Election will reflect nothing less than the sovereign will of the Nigerian electorate,” Amupitan said.

The 2027 elections will hold in two phases, with the presidential and National Assembly elections scheduled for January 16, while governorship and State House of Assembly elections will take place on February 6.

Amupitan said the commission was preparing for an election involving almost 100 million voters, 176,846 polling units and more than 1.4 million ad hoc personnel.

He said recent off-cycle elections had provided opportunities to test electoral reforms under the Electoral Act 2026. He cited the August 15 Osun governorship election, where early logistics deployment recorded more than 94 per cent polling-unit opening.

According to him, the use of the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System, the results viewing portal and improved security coordination also provided useful lessons for the 2027 polls.

He added that INEC was working with the National Identity Management Commission to integrate the National Identification Number into its Continuous Voter Registration system. The move, he said, would help verify and clean the voter register.

The INEC chairman, however, identified technology, logistics and political dynamics as key areas requiring continued attention ahead of the elections.

He requested technical support from the AU in areas including digital training for ad hoc staff, countering election disinformation and detecting artificial intelligence-generated deepfakes.

He also sought support for strengthening the Election Monitoring and Support Centre, as well as improving the participation of women, youths, persons with disabilities, internally displaced persons and other underrepresented groups.

The AU mission is in Nigeria from September 13 to 19 as part of its pre-election assessment process. It is led by the former Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Affairs Minister of Ethiopia, Demeke Mekonen Hassen.

Hassen said the mission was designed to support Nigeria’s preparations and identify possible gaps before, during and after the elections.

“Our task is just a supporting mission,” he said, stressing that the team would assess the electoral process without interfering with INEC’s independence.

The mission will engage political parties, civil society organisations, security agencies, the media and other stakeholders. It will examine issues including the credibility of the voter register, readiness of the results management system, logistics, funding, inclusion, security and the transparency of election results.

Hassen said the AU would also assess whether the electoral environment meets the minimum standards of credibility, transparency, fairness, inclusiveness and a level playing field.

INEC said it would continue to cooperate with the mission as preparations for the 2027 general election gather pace.