INEC Set For Saturday’s Ekiti Governorship, Bye-Elections In Six States

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) says it is fully prepared to conduct the governorship and bye-elections scheduled to hold on Saturday.

The elections include the Ekiti State Governorship Election as well as bye-elections in Dawaki Kudu/Warawa Federal Constituency in Kano State, and Zuru State Constituency in Kebbi State.

Other bye-elections will hold in Ondo South Senatorial District in Ondo State, Rivers South East Senatorial District in Rivers State, Nasarawa North Senatorial District in Nasarawa State, and Enugu North Senatorial District in Enugu State.

INEC’s Deputy Director, Publicity and Voter Education, Wilfred Ifogah, said the Commission had put in place necessary measures to ensure free, fair and credible elections.

Speaking with LEADERSHIP on Thursday in Abuja, Ifogah said the Commission had trained and retrained its staff and ad hoc personnel on handling emergencies, managing sensitive election materials, and adhering strictly to electoral guidelines to prevent electoral malpractice.

“The Commission has done its best to ensure elections are conducted in an atmosphere that guarantees free and fair participation, where every eligible voter will be allowed to cast his or her vote without any hindrance.

“Security agencies will be deployed to man polling units and Registration Area Centres (RACs), where electoral officials and materials will be kept ahead of deployment to their assigned polling units.

“We have also directed electoral officials to move to their assigned polling units by 7:30am ahead of the commencement of voting at 8:30am,” he said.

On the high PVC collection in Ekiti, the INEC spokesman described the turnout as impressive, noting that the Commission intensified voter sensitisation ahead of the exercise.

He added that INEC would build on the achievement in preparation for the 2027 general elections.

Ifogah also called on political parties to caution their members against acts capable of causing violence or disrupting the voting process at polling units.

Meanwhile, INEC disclosed that a total of 1,028,929 Permanent Voters’ Cards (PVCs) had been collected across Ekiti State ahead of Saturday’s governorship election, representing 97.1 per cent of registered voters and a slight increase from the figures recorded in 2023.

The Commission made this known in a statement issued on Wednesday by the National Commissioner and Chairman of the Information and Voter Education Committee, Mohammed Kudu Haruna.

According to the Commission, the number of registered voters in Ekiti increased from 987,647 recorded in 2023 to 1,059,360 in 2026 following the suspension of the Continuous Voter Registration (CVR) exercise on May 15 and the subsequent clean-up of the voters’ register.

INEC noted that the 2026 collection figure surpassed the 958,052 PVCs collected in 2023, which represented a 97.0 per cent collection rate.

The Commission recalled that the PVC collection exercise, originally scheduled to end on June 11, was extended to June 14 after consultations with stakeholders during a meeting held in Ado-Ekiti.

On replacement of lost, damaged or defaced voter cards, the Commission said it received 14,406 applications within the approved timeline and printed all replacement PVCs, adding that most had already been collected.

The electoral body, however, explained that plans to introduce downloadable copies of lost, damaged or defaced voter cards could not be implemented for the Ekiti election due to incomplete technology infrastructure.

It added that the option is expected to become available in future elections, particularly for the Osun Governorship Election in August 2026 and the 2027 General Election.

INEC commended traditional rulers, community leaders, civil society organisations, political parties and members of the media for supporting voter mobilisation and encouraging citizens to collect their PVCs.

The Commission further stated that all PVCs for eligible applicants were printed and made available, including for those who requested transfers or replacement of damaged or lost cards.

INEC urged all registered voters who had collected their PVCs to participate peacefully in the election and reassured residents of Ekiti State of its commitment to conducting a free, fair and credible poll.