– INEC Releases 2025-2026 Election Schedule, Resumes Voter Registration
– New Guidelines to Clarify Election Result Review Process
The Westminster Foundation for Democracy (WFD) has highlighted the escalating costs of political participation in Nigeria, warning that democracy is at risk as women, youth, and Persons with Disabilities (PWDs) are being priced out. According to its report, How Money is Undermining Nigeria’s Democracy, launched in Abuja with support from the European Union’s WYDE Civic Engagement project, securing a House of Representatives seat can cost up to N500 million, while post-election litigation may require N1 billion.
The report notes that senior lawyers charge between N500 million and N1 billion to handle election disputes from tribunals to the Supreme Court, turning the judiciary into an expensive extension of the electoral process. It also revealed that top governorship candidates in the 2024 Edo and Ondo off-cycle elections spent between N2.3 billion and N3.8 billion, despite the Electoral Act’s campaign spending limits, which are poorly enforced.
Meanwhile, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has unveiled its 2025-2026 electoral timetable, covering five major elections.
INEC Chairman, Prof Mahmood Yakubu, announced during a consultative meeting with Resident Electoral Commissioners (RECs) in Abuja that the schedule includes by-elections in 12 states on August 16, 2025, the Anambra governorship election on November 8, 2025, the FCT Area Council elections on February 21, 2026, the Ekiti governorship election on June 20, 2026, and the Osun governorship election on August 8, 2026.
INEC also announced the resumption of Continuous Voter Registration (CVR). Online pre-registration begins August 18, 2025, with in-person registration starting August 25, 2025. For Anambra’s governorship election, CVR will commence earlier next week across all 326 wards to compile a new voters’ register at least 90 days before the election, as mandated by law.
To address conflicting interpretations of Section 65 of the Electoral Act 2022 on election result reviews, INEC is finalising supplementary guidelines, expected to be released this week and made available on its website and official platforms.
Yakubu also welcomed two new National Commissioners, Prof Sunday Aja and Abdulrazak Yusuf, and six recently sworn-in RECs, urging them to proactively manage elections without constant oversight from INEC headquarters.
