INEC approves four parties for Nasarawa North senatorial by-election

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has announced that four political parties are set to participate in the Nasarawa North Senatorial District bye-election on June 20. These parties have successfully nominated their candidates.

The Resident Electoral Commissioner in Nasarawa State, Mohammed Abubakar-Sadiq, shared this information on Wednesday in Lafia while talking to journalists about the commission's preparations for the election.

Abubakar-Sadiq listed the four parties as the All Progressives Congress, Peoples Democratic Party, Labour Party, and New Nigeria Peoples Party.

He explained that the parties held their primary elections between May 22 and May 26 in line with the electoral timetable. INEC monitored these primaries to ensure they followed the rules in the Electoral Act before clearing the parties to nominate their candidates.

"The timeline allowed for campaigns is from June 10 to June 18, 2026, and the commission will continue to monitor campaigns to ensure compliance with the Electoral Act and other relevant regulations," he said.

The REC also mentioned that INEC has engaged with the four parties and advised them to strictly follow the rules guiding the electoral process before the election.

He stated that INEC is moving forward with its preparations for the bye-election, which will take place in Akwanga, Wamba, and Nasarawa Eggon Local Government Areas.

Abubakar-Sadiq pointed out that all non-sensitive election materials have been received and sent to the local government areas involved.

He said electoral officers must sort the materials based on Registration Areas and polling units to enable smooth deployment.

The REC added that they have identified Registration Area Centres (RACs) and Super RACs, which are ready to be activated on June 19 for election personnel and materials.

This arrangement aims to ensure that voting starts early and runs smoothly on election day.

Abubakar-Sadiq revealed that there are 338,042 registered voters from the 2023 general election who will be able to vote in this bye-election.

He clarified that voters who registered during the ongoing Continuous Voter Registration, which started in August 2025, will not be able to participate because their permanent voter cards are not yet ready.

The REC also shared that supervisory presiding officers from INEC, the National Youth Service Corps, and the National Orientation Agency have received training from June 5 to June 7 at the Isa Mustapha Agwai Polytechnic in Lafia.

Training for presiding officers and assistant presiding officers for the 583 polling units will take place from June 12 to June 14.

He noted that the commission has set up its Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) machines and printed the electronic voters’ register for deployment.

Abubakar-Sadiq expressed his confidence in the commission's readiness to conduct a free, fair, and credible bye-election on June 20.

"We are fully prepared for the election and all necessary arrangements have been put in place to ensure a smooth and credible process," he said.