2027: INEC Warns Against Private Declaration of Election Results, Says Commission Has Exclusive Authority

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has warned political parties, candidates, and other stakeholders against declaring privately collated election results ahead of the 2027 general elections, insisting that only the Commission has the legal authority to declare election results.

INEC Chairman, Professor Joash Ojo Amupitan, said this at a World Press Conference on Tuesday while outlining the Commission’s preparations for the 2027 elections and identifying the collation of results as one of the major gaps observed in previous electoral processes.

Peter Obi, the NDC Presidential Candidate, has said his team would establish an independent result-transmission system to send polling-unit results to its own situation room to monitor the election.

According to Amupitan, while voting at polling units has continued to improve, the collation stage remains an area requiring greater attention to protect the integrity of the electoral process.

Amupitan said the Commission remained committed to neutrality and the integrity of the ballot box, adding that artificial intelligence would be deployed as part of the result verification process for the 2027 elections.

He urged Nigerians and political actors to resist any attempt to announce results outside the legally prescribed process.

“Resist the declaration of privately collated results because under the Electoral Acts, the authority to declare results rests exclusively with the Commission,” he said.

The INEC chairman also disclosed that preparations for the 2027 elections were progressing, with some states already receiving non-sensitive election materials.

He said procurement for the printing of ballot papers and result sheets was nearly completed, with the Commission advancing towards final contract awards.

On the issue of party nominations, Amupitan disclosed that INEC had received 112 formal complaints from aspirants, candidates and political parties over the nomination process.

He said the complaints had been investigated and resolved, except those that remained pending before the courts.

The INEC chairman also referred to a recent Supreme Court judgment in the case involving INEC and the Zenith Labour Party, delivered on September 24, 2026, which, according to him, affirmed the constitutionality of Section 77(5)–(7) of the Electoral Act 2026 and upheld the Commission’s revised timetable and schedule of activities for the 2027 general elections.

Amupitan said INEC received the certified true copy of the judgment on Tuesday and had commenced its review.

Meanwhile, INEC disclosed that Nigeria’s voter register has risen to 103,228,715 registered voters ahead of the 2027 general elections.

The register comprises 53,528,218 male voters and 49,700,497 female voters.

By age distribution, voters aged 18–34 account for 29,777,576; those aged 35–49 number 43,265,946; voters aged 50–69 stand at 22,986,900, while those aged 70 and above number 7,402,291.

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

Other states among the top 10 are Katsina, 3,876,051; Rivers, 3,736,434; Oyo, 3,588,111; Delta, 3,525,988; Benue, 3,052,225; Ogun, 3,037,981; and Bauchi, 3,012,547.