INEC Defends 2027 Election Timetable, Appeals Court Judgments Over Electoral Schedule
INEC Defends 2027 Election Timetable, Appeals Court Judgments Over Electoral Schedule
INEC Defends 2027 Election Timetable, Appeals Court Judgments Over Electoral Schedule
The Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Joash Amupitan, has defended the Commission’s timetable for the 2027 General Election, saying coordinated electoral timelines are essential to ensuring certainty, transparency and the smooth conduct of elections.
Speaking on Tuesday at the Second Quarterly Consultative Meeting with leaders of political parties in Abuja, Prof. Amupitan explained that INEC had appealed two recent Federal High Court judgments that questioned aspects of the Commission’s timetable and schedule of activities for the 2027 elections.
According to him, one judgment delivered in the case involving the Youth Party questioned certain timelines contained in INEC’s electoral schedule, while another ruling in a suit filed by the Social Democratic Party upheld the Commission’s authority to issue an election timetable but nullified some timelines relating to the nomination and substitution of candidates.
“These judgments raise important legal questions concerning the extent of the Commission’s constitutional and statutory powers in coordinating and regulating electoral activities,” he said.
The INEC chairman noted that the Commission had already filed appeals and taken steps to seek definitive interpretations from the appellate courts, stressing that electoral activities are interconnected and cannot be treated as isolated events.
He explained that several critical election-related processes, including party membership verification, monitoring of party primaries, printing of ballot papers, configuration of BVAS machines, and inspection of election materials by political parties, require proper coordination despite the absence of specific statutory timelines in the Electoral Act.
“The Commission therefore considers it imperative that all electoral activities be harmonised within a coherent and workable framework that promotes certainty, transparency, administrative efficiency and equal treatment of all political parties,” he stated.
Ekiti Governorship Election Preparations
Prof. Amupitan disclosed that preparations for the Ekiti State governorship election scheduled for June 20, 2026, were progressing smoothly.
He said the voters’ register for the election now contains 1,059,360 registered voters following the addition of 66,664 new registrants through the Continuous Voter Registration exercise. He added that 2,103 cases of double registration had been detected and invalidated.
The INEC chairman assured stakeholders that logistics, technology deployment and the training of election personnel were on schedule, with all 2,445 polling units across the state expected to open simultaneously at 8:30 a.m. on election day.
Bye-Elections in Six Constituencies
INEC will also conduct bye-elections on the same day in six constituencies, namely:
Enugu North Senatorial District
Nasarawa North Senatorial District
Rivers South-East Senatorial District
Ondo South Senatorial District
Dawakin Kudu/Warawa Federal Constituency
Zuru State Constituency
He said the same operational standards and technological safeguards being deployed for the Ekiti election would apply to all six bye-elections.
Candidate Nomination Portal
The INEC chairman also announced that political parties would receive official access codes to the Commission’s Candidate Nomination Portal on June 26, 2026, for the submission of candidates’ details for the 2027 General Election.
He warned that the portal is fully automated and would close automatically at the expiration of the submission period, urging political parties to ensure their ICT personnel and officials are adequately prepared.
IPAC Backs INEC’s Appeal
Responding on behalf of political parties, the National Chairman of the Inter-Party Advisory Council, Yusuf Mamman Dantalle, expressed support for INEC’s decision to appeal the court rulings, describing the judgments as a source of confusion and uncertainty for political parties and candidates.
However, he called on the National Assembly to review aspects of the Electoral Act 2026, particularly provisions governing party primaries, which he said had created operational challenges and contributed to disputes within political parties.
Dantalle also condemned recent incidents of political violence in Osun State and urged political actors to embrace peaceful, issue-based campaigns ahead of upcoming governorship elections and the 2027 general election cycle.
“No political ambition is worth the loss of human life, the destruction of property, or the destabilisation of communities,” he said.
INEC Defends 2027 Election Timetable, Appeals Court Judgments Over Electoral Schedule
