Lagos has emerged as the state with the highest number of registered voters ahead of the 2027 general elections, as the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) puts Nigeria’s voter register at more than 103 million.
The figure was disclosed yesterday by INEC Chairman, Prof. Joash Amupitan, at a world press conference and stakeholders’ meeting in Abuja.
According to Amupitan, Lagos has 7,488,633 registered voters, followed by Kano with 6,570,276 and Kaduna with 4,662,640.
Katsina comes fourth with 3,876,051 voters, followed by Rivers with 3,736,434.
Others in the top 10 are Oyo, 3,588,111; Delta, 3,525,988; Benue, 3,057,225; Ogun, 3,037,981 and Bauchi, 3,012,547.
At the bottom of the register is Ekiti with 1,055,708 voters, followed by Bayelsa with 1,200,691.
The Federal Capital Territory has 1,732,043 voters, while Yobe and Gombe have 1,733,671 and 1,768,566 respectively.
Amupitan said the new figures followed the completion of three phases of the Continuous Voter Registration (CVR).
The three phases produced 10,772,421 new registrations, comprising 2,611,266 in Phase One, 4,121,835 in Phase Two and 3,867,997 in Phase Three.
He said the records were subjected to Automated Biometric Identification System verification before eligible registrants were added to the existing register.
The chairman said men account for 53,528,218 voters, representing 51.75 per cent, while women account for 49,900,497, or 48.25 per cent.
Voters aged between 35 and 49 form the largest group, with 43,265,946, representing 41.83 per cent of the register.
Those aged 18 to 34 account for 29,777,578, or 28.79 per cent, while voters aged 50 to 69 number 22,982,900. Nigerians aged 70 and above account for 7,402,291 voters.
INEC also disclosed that 232,658 Persons With Disabilities are captured in the register.
PVC DISTRIBUTION BEGINS
The commission said distribution of Phase One Permanent Voter Cards to Local Government Centres would begin on Friday, October 9, 2026.
The voter register will also be displayed nationwide from October 9 to 15 for public scrutiny, allowing citizens to raise claims and objections.
Amupitan said the final register for the 2027 elections would be presented to political parties on December 15.
He said INEC had also introduced online registration and printable PVC technology, aimed at reducing the delays associated with obtaining voter cards.
57,000 NEW BVAS DEVICES
The INEC chairman said the commission had moved from planning to active execution of its election preparations, with contracts already awarded for the production of 57,000 new BVAS devices.
Additional voting cubicles and ballot boxes are also being produced.
He said the commission was upgrading BVAS software and strengthening its eEC8A results system to ensure polling-unit results are properly verified, authenticated and uploaded to the IReV portal.
INEC is also planning a nationwide election simulation and mock accreditation exercise in November to test personnel, equipment and network systems before the polls.
The commission has established an Artificial Intelligence Division within its ICT Department, with AI auditing tools being integrated into the results verification process.
1.4M STAFF FOR 2027 POLLS
INEC said it would require 1,414,768 ad-hoc personnel for the 2027 elections.
A total of 707,384 personnel will be deployed for the Presidential and National Assembly elections on January 16, 2027, while the same number will be required for the Governorship and State House of Assembly elections on February 6.
The bulk of the workforce is expected to come from members of the National Youth Service Corps.
On security, the police said operations were ongoing in areas affected by insecurity to create a safer environment for voters, election officials and materials.
INEC also said it was working with security and financial agencies to monitor political activities, illicit campaign spending and possible vote-buying.
Meanwhile, the European Union said it would deploy an electoral mission to monitor the 2027 election process.
The EU Representative in Nigeria, Ambassador Gautier Mignot, urged all stakeholders to work towards credible elections and peaceful resolution of disputes.
With the 2027 elections now about 100 days away, Amupitan said INEC had completed nine major milestones on its timetable and had moved into the final phase of preparations.
He assured Nigerians that the commission was committed to neutrality, operational efficiency and the integrity of the ballot.
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