The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has set 9 October as the start date for collecting Permanent Voters’ Cards (PVCs) across Nigeria. This is in preparation for the general elections in 2027.
INEC Chairman, Joash Amupitan, who is a professor and Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), shared this news on Monday in Abuja. He spoke during a key event with media leaders organized by the Nigerian Guild of Editors (NGE) in partnership with INEC.
Mr Amupitan explained that INEC will distribute newly produced PVCs to Local Government Area (LGA) collection centers all over the country. This is for eligible voters to pick up their cards.
This announcement comes after the completion of the three-phase Continuous Voter Registration (CVR) exercise. Now, the total number of registered voters in Nigeria has surpassed 103 million.
The chairman also mentioned that INEC has finished the final cleanup of the voters’ register using the Automated Biometric Identification System (ABIS).
"Following the conclusion of our three-phase Continuous Voter Registration (CVR) exercise, which captured over 10.6 million new applicants, our Voter Register Department has completed the final Automated Biometric Identification System (ABIS) cleanup. Nigeria’s National Register of Voters is now over 103 million," he said.
Mr Amupitan revealed that INEC has introduced a new printable PVC technology. This aims to cut down the time people wait to get their voters’ cards.
He noted that this technology came about during the third phase of the CVR, as stated in Section 18(1) of the Electoral Act 2026.
This new system will also help voters replace lost or stolen cards without long waits.
The chairman announced that there will be a preliminary display of the voters’ register for claims and objections from 9 to 15 October.
He encouraged eligible voters to take part in the verification process. It is important that their details are correctly recorded in the register.
INEC reported that the three-phase CVR attracted 10,772,421 new registrants.
The first phase took place from 25 August to 10 December 2025 and registered 2,611,266 voters. The second phase ran from 5 January to 17 April 2026 and registered 4,121,835 voters, while the third phase was from 11 May to 26 July 2026 and registered 3,867,997 voters.
Due to the completed registration exercise, the National Register of Voters has now exceeded 103 million ahead of the 2027 elections.
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