By Mercy Peter
The Chairman, Independent National Electoral Commission, Prof.Joash Amupitan has disclosed plans by the Commission to clean up the voter register ahead of 2027 General elections.
To this, Amupitan said the Commission will be embarking on a nationwide Voter Revalidation Exercise.
This, he said, is part of the efforts to ensure a credible voter register.
The current register stood at 93,469,008 voters.
Amupitan who spoke on Wednesday 4 February 2026 at the first Quarterly Consultative Meeting with Civil Society Organisations in Abuja stressed the importance of a credible voter register.
He said: “A credible register of voters remains the bedrock of free, fair and transparent elections. No electoral process can command public confidence without trust in the integrity of its voters’ register. Nigeria’s national register, first compiled ahead of the 2011 General Election, has since been continuously updated and deployed in the General Elections of 2011, 2015, 2019 and 2023, as well as in several off-cycle governorship and bye-elections. As of the 2023 General Election, the register stood at 93,469,008 voters. However, persistent challenges —including duplicate registrations, under-age registration, registration by non-citizens, deceased voters and incomplete or inaccurate records— continue to generate legitimate concerns. Such anomalies undermine public confidence in the electoral process.
“In response, the Commission will embark on a thorough clean-up with a view to further sanitising and strengthening the integrity of the register. Accordingly, the Commission will be embarking on a nationwide Voter Revalidation Exercise ahead of the 2027 General Election.”
He noted that the first phase of the ongoing Continuous Voter Registration exercise conducted from 18th August to 10th December 2025, registered a total of 2,782, 589 eligible voters.
The second phase, according to him commenced on 5th January 2026 and will run until 17th April 2026.
He stressed that “The entire CVR exercise is scheduled to span one year and will be concluded on 30th August 2026.”
He commended the current turnout of eligible voters for the exercise, saying it “affirms the continuing belief of Nigerians in the democratic process and in the efforts of the Commission to ensure that every eligible citizen is afforded the opportunity to register and vote.”
“For transparency purposes, data on completed online pre-registrations and physical registrations are published weekly on the Commission’s website,” he added.
