By Opeyemi Adelakun
The Independent National Electoral Commission has announced October 9, 2026, as the commencement date for the nationwide collection of Permanent Voter Cards ahead of the 2027 general election.
INEC Chairman, Professor Joash Amupitan, disclosed this on Monday in Kaduna during the North-West Zonal Interactive Meeting with staff and a readiness assessment for the 2027 elections.
Amupitan said the recent Continuous Voter Registration exercise produced more than 10.7 million new registrations. INEC has separately reported a cumulative 10,772,421 new registrants from the three-phase exercise, subject to biometric verification.
The INEC chairman called for the removal of bottlenecks affecting PVC distribution at the Local Government Area level, stressing the need to prevent eligible voters from being disenfranchised.
He also disclosed that the commission was refining its technological systems, including voter verification and result-transmission processes.
According to him, INEC is also improving its Result Management Systems, including the recently introduced eEC8A, as part of preparations for the 2027 elections.
The commission is equally implementing what it described as a “Zero-Failure” approach to election logistics. The approach covers early deployment of electoral materials, movement and distribution, security coordination and the training of ad-hoc personnel.
INEC’s preparations are taking place ahead of the 2027 general election timetable. The commission’s published timetable lists the presidential and National Assembly election for January 16, 2027, while the governorship and State House of Assembly elections are scheduled for February 6, 2027.
The commission has also made voter-status verification and PVC-related services available through its official voter portal, allowing registered voters to check their status and obtain information about their cards.
INEC said its ongoing preparations are aimed at ensuring that eligible voters can participate in the electoral process without being prevented by administrative or logistical challenges.
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