INEC begins movement of election materials to states ahead of 2027 polls

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) said on Thursday, November 12, it had begun sending non-sensitive election materials to some geopolitical zones ahead of the 2027 general elections.

INEC National Commissioner Prof. Rhoda Gumus announced the development while receiving a delegation from Kenya’s Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC), led by the Kenyan High Commissioner to Nigeria, Isaac Keen Parashina.

Gumus, who represented INEC Chairman Prof. Joash Amupitan, said the commission had completed nine of the 14 activities on its electoral timetable. She said Amupitan was in the United Kingdom, where he was scheduled to brief an audience at Chatham House on preparations for the elections.

She said Amupitan had concluded a tour of Nigeria’s six geopolitical zones last week to assess their readiness, identify operational challenges and agree on steps to address them. “We can see from our tour that we are really going towards the election proper,” Gumus said.

She said INEC had completed production of Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs) and that most states had received the first and second batches for distribution. She urged registered voters to collect their cards. Gumus said staff training was ongoing at INEC headquarters and state offices, alongside preparations to procure and deploy the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS).

On diaspora voting, Gumus said Nigeria’s electoral law did not provide for citizens abroad to vote and would have to be amended before INEC could implement the proposal. She added that the commission had arranged meetings between its directors and the Kenyan delegation to discuss how its departments run elections.

Parashina thanked INEC for hosting the delegation as both countries prepare for elections. Kenya’s general elections are scheduled for August 2027.

“The success of Nigeria remains a great success to Kenya and indeed to the continent,” he said, describing Nigeria as Africa’s biggest democracy.

Parashina said the delegation wanted to learn from INEC’s experience, including how to involve special interest groups in elections. He said Kenyans living in about 12 countries voted in the last general election and that Kenya was working to extend diaspora voting to about 26 countries.

He said the expansion was driven by constitutional provisions and court rulings requiring Kenya to gradually extend voting rights to its citizens abroad.