By Mercy Peter
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) on Sunday 1 March 2026 launched a comprehensive technical review of its Regulations and Guidelines for Political Parties.
This is to ensure alignment with the recently enacted Electoral Act 2026 and evolving electoral dynamics, a statement signed by Adedayo Oketola, Chief Press Secretary/Media Adviser to the INEC Chairman, stated.
The launch marks a pivotal phase for INEC under its new Chairman, Prof Joash Amupitan with the aim of strengthening agenda designed to enhance regulatory clarity, deepen compliance among political parties, reduce pre-election disputes, and bolster public confidence in Nigeria’s democratic system.
The Technical Workshop on the Revision of the INEC Regulations and Guidelines for Political Parties brings together National Commissioners, Directors across operational departments, legal practitioners, election administrators, and institutional stakeholders for an exhaustive clause-by-clause review of the existing 2022 regulatory framework.
The Electoral Act 2026 introduces wide-ranging reforms affecting party administration, candidate nomination procedures, compliance standards, dispute resolution structures, and the Commission’s regulatory oversight mandate.
INEC’s current exercise seeks to harmonise its subsidiary guidelines with these statutory amendments well ahead of the 2027 electoral cycle.
Beyond statutory compliance, the Commission is leveraging lessons from previous elections to strengthen preventive regulation. Recurring challenges including opaque party primary processes, internal membership disputes, weak financial disclosures, and exclusionary participation patterns have often fuelled litigation and undermined electoral certainty. Addressing these structural gaps proactively, INEC notes, is central to safeguarding the integrity of the 2027 polls.
INEC is integrating insights from the Political Party Performance Index (PPPI), a diagnostic instrument developed to assess governance standards and compliance levels across political parties.
The objective is to transition from reactive enforcement to a data-driven supervisory model anchored on measurable benchmarks and institutional accountability.
Speaking on the process, Prof. Amupitan underscored that credible elections are built long before citizens cast their votes.
“For elections to inspire public confidence, the institutions that produce candidates must themselves operate transparently and within the law,” he stated.
The workshop is also expected to develop strengthened compliance mechanisms, clearer reporting obligations, and enhanced operational guidance for monitoring party activities nationwide. Key focus areas include financial accountability, dispute prevention frameworks, accurate membership documentation, and improved benchmarks for the inclusion of women, youth, and Persons with Disabilities within party structures.
Technical support for aspects of the review is being provided by the Westminster Foundation for Democracy (WFD), in collaboration with Nigerian legal and electoral experts, offering comparative insights drawn from global democratic practices.
The Country Director of WFD Nigeria, Adebowale Olorunmola, described the review as a foundational reform effort.
“This isn’t just a review of a document; it is a reconstruction of the democratic foundation. We are moving toward an era where political parties are held to the same high standards of integrity as the electoral commission itself,” he said.
Olorunmola added that grounding reforms in empirical data, including findings from the PPPI, would help reduce avoidable disputes, strengthen internal democracy, and promote transparency and inclusivity within Nigeria’s political parties.
INEC further emphasised that early regulatory alignment with the Electoral Act 2026 would significantly curb pre-election litigation and administrative disputes that have historically diverted institutional focus from election preparation and delivery.
Following the technical review, a consolidated draft of the Revised Regulations and Guidelines (2026 Edition) will undergo internal validation before engagement with the Inter-Party Advisory Council (IPAC) and all registered political parties as part of broader implementation consultations.
The Commission reaffirmed its commitment to sustained electoral reforms aimed at strengthening democratic institutions and ensuring that political parties remain credible vehicles for leadership selection in Africa’s most populous democracy.
