2027 Polls: INEC Fixes Nov 28 for Nationwide Mock Presidential Election

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has scheduled November 28, 2026, for a nationwide mock accreditation and voting exercise to test critical upgrades to its Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) and electronic results transmission infrastructure ahead of the 2027 general elections.
​The announcement coincides with the commission’s commencement of the deployment of non-sensitive electoral materials to various states across the country in preparation for the polls.
​INEC Chairman, Prof. Joash Amupitan (SAN), disclosed the date on Thursday during a policy dialogue at Chatham House in London, organized in partnership with the Kimpact Development Initiative under the theme, “Nigeria’s 2027 Elections: Democratic Trajectory and Regional Stability Beyond the Ballot.”
​According to a statement issued in Abuja by the Chief Press Secretary and Media Adviser to the INEC Chairman, Adedayo Oketola, the simulation will mirror the presidential election—scheduled for January 16, 2027—allowing the electoral umpire to evaluate the efficiency and reliability of its accreditation and transmission mechanisms before actual voting begins.
​“On the 28th of this month, we will conduct a mock accreditation and voting exercise across all states of the federation to simulate the presidential election and verify that we have gotten both accreditation and electronic result transmission right,” Amupitan stated.
​To bolster transparency and public confidence, the INEC boss further revealed that the commission has integrated new technical safeguards designed to automatically block the upload of inaccurate polling unit figures or results reflecting over-voting onto the INEC Result Viewing (IReV) portal.