2027: Lagos, Kano, Lead as INEC Releases States With Highest Registered Voters

Lagos, Kano and Kaduna states have the highest numbers of registered voters ahead of the 2027 general elections, according to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).

INEC Chairman, Prof. Joash Amupitan, disclosed this on Tuesday at a stakeholders’ meeting and press conference in Abuja while presenting an update on the national voters’ register.

Amupitan said the register now contains 103,428,715 voters following the completion of the three-phase Continuous Voter Registration (CVR) exercise and final biometric clean-up.

Lagos tops the list with 7,488,633 registered voters, followed by Kano with 6,570,276 and Kaduna with 4,662,640.

Katsina ranks fourth with 3,876,051 registered voters, while Rivers is fifth with 3,736,434.

Oyo follows with 3,588,111 voters, while Delta has 3,525,988.

Benue has 3,057,225 registered voters, followed by Ogun with 3,037,981 and Bauchi with 3,012,547.

The three-phase CVR exercise recorded 10,772,421 new registrations before the final biometric verification and clean-up of the register.

Amupitan said the commission would commence nationwide collection of newly issued Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs) on October 9, 2026.

He said the register would also be displayed for public scrutiny from October 9 to 15, 2026, in compliance with Section 19(1) of the Electoral Act 2026.

According to him, the exercise would allow Nigerians to scrutinise the register and raise claims or objections ahead of the 2027 general elections.

Giving a demographic breakdown, Amupitan said male voters numbered 53,528,218, representing 51.75 per cent of the register, while female voters stood at 49,900,497, representing 48.25 per cent.

Voters aged between 35 and 49 years formed the largest age group, with 43,265,946 voters, representing 41.83 per cent of the register.

Those aged between 18 and 34 years numbered 29,777,576, representing 28.79 per cent, while voters aged between 50 and 69 years accounted for 22,982,900, or 22.22 per cent.

Voters aged 70 years and above constituted the smallest age group, with 7,402,291 voters, representing 7.16 per cent.

The commission also recorded 232,658 persons with disabilities across 10 categories, representing about 0.23 per cent of the total register.

Amupitan said the largest category was classified as “others”, with 101,183 registered voters, followed by persons with albinism with 44,023 and those with physical impairment with 27,141.

The register also contains 19,936 persons with visual impairment, 14,326 with hearing impairment, 8,832 with autism, 7,723 with cognitive or learning disabilities, 5,755 with limb impairment, 2,008 with Down syndrome and 1,656 with spinal cord injuries.