2027 Elections: INEC Deletes 1.6m Voter Records, Identifies 54 Suspects in 10 States

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has deleted 1,609,553 records from Nigeria’s voters’ register following a nationwide scrutiny that uncovered multiple registrations, manipulated photographs and other irregularities.

The commission also announced that 54 persons across 10 states had been identified over their alleged involvement in the registration infractions, warning that those found culpable would face disciplinary action and possible prosecution.

INEC Chairman, Prof. Joash Ojo Amupitan, SAN, announced the development on Monday in Abuja while presenting the outcome of the review of the Preliminary Register of Voters ahead of the 2027 general elections.

He said the deleted records comprised 1,608,660 confirmed invalid registrations and 873 entries belonging to verified deceased voters.

The exercise followed complaints and objections from Nigerians after the preliminary register was displayed at ward levels between October 9 and 15, 2026, and subsequently published online.

Amupitan said the commission received 11,088,238 registration records from the three phases of the 2025/2026 Continuous Voter Registration exercise.

He explained that the Automated Biometric Identification System initially flagged 1,545,052 records for further examination, noting that being flagged did not automatically invalidate a registration.

According to him, 1,277,052 registrations had been confirmed invalid and excluded before the preliminary register was published.

Following complaints received during the statutory 14-day period for claims and objections, the commission subjected another 268,000 cases to adjudication.

Of these, 217,722 were found to be invalid and removed, while 50,278 were cleared and retained.

The chairman said additional screening identified another 113,886 invalid registrations, bringing the number of irregular entries removed following the public objections to 331,608.

He said the commission had concluded the cleaning exercise relating to the 2025/2026 CVR, although final reconciliation and quality assurance would continue ahead of the publication of the final register on December 15, 2026.

On the circumstances surrounding the irregularities, Amupitan disclosed that investigations revealed deliberate violations of registration procedures by some personnel.

He said the commission identified cases involving suspected multiple registrations, substituted photographs, unusual registration patterns and abuse of provisions designed to accommodate exceptional registration circumstances, including provisions for persons with disabilities.

The 54 persons identified across 10 states, he said, would face necessary administrative measures, including possible prosecution.

INEC, he added, was strengthening its biometric capture, authentication and verification procedures to prevent similar violations in future registration exercises.

However, the chairman warned that the latest cleaning exercise did not resolve all the integrity challenges confronting the national voters’ register.

He explained that many of the duplicate names and photographs generating public concerns were linked to historical registration records captured between 2011 and 2023.

According to him, the commission had resolved at its meeting on November 9 to extend its scrutiny to the older records, directing that previously flagged cases and obvious duplications should be removed after proper verification.

Amupitan recalled that INEC had announced plans for a nationwide voter revalidation exercise in February 2026 to address historical inconsistencies, update biometric information and improve the quality of the register.

The exercise was subsequently deferred following concerns from stakeholders that its proximity to the 2027 general elections could affect the participation of eligible voters.

He, however, stressed that the postponement did not prevent the commission from deploying existing biometric screening and verification mechanisms to maintain the integrity of the register.

Addressing complaints by voters who claimed their names had disappeared from the preliminary register, the INEC chairman said many of the affected persons had registered between 2011 and 2023 and later undertook fresh registrations instead of transferring their existing voter records.

He explained that the new registrations were rejected by the biometric identification system, while their original records remained at their previous registration locations.

He advised such voters to check the locations where they initially registered.

On the distribution of Permanent Voter Cards, Amupitan said PVCs from the first and second phases of registration, including transferred cards, were being distributed at local government areas nationwide.

He added that cards from the third and final phase were being delivered and would be dispatched to states the following week.

The distribution exercise, he said, would return to Registration Areas across the country from December 1, 2026.

Amupitan appealed for patience from voters awaiting their cards from the third phase, explaining that their production was being handled outside Nigeria.

He also assured Nigerians that the commission had additional safeguards against multiple accreditation and voting during the 2027 elections.

According to him, the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) requires voters to be physically present at their designated polling units for biometric verification through fingerprints or facial recognition.

He said the system verifies voters’ identities against the register and records successful accreditation, with procedures designed to prevent multiple accreditation.

The chairman reiterated that the commission’s priority was to remove invalid records without disenfranchising eligible Nigerians.

He said INEC would continue to provide verifiable information on the clean-up exercise while protecting personal data and the integrity of ongoing investigations.