The Nigerian Senate has rejected a section of the Electoral Act 2022 Amendment Bill that would have allowed presiding officers to electronically transmit election results directly from polling units to the portal, though the Senate President disputes this characterization.
This development coincides with the Senate’s passage of the Electoral Act 2022 (Repeal and Reenactment) Amendment Bill 2026 of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) through third reading.
According to the proposed amendment to Clause 60, subsection 3 of the Amendment bill, that section was supposed to make electronic transmission of election results mandatory, but the Senate rejected it while passing other electoral reforms.
The Senate convened on Wednesday, 4 February, to decide on various clauses in the Electoral Amendment Bill.
Meanwhile, INEC Chairman Joash Amupitan had expressed concern about the numerous delays in amending the Electoral Act, calling on civil society organizations to urge the National Assembly to expedite action on the bill.
Although INEC has assured its readiness for the 2027 General Election and promised to release the timetable and schedule of activities, this will be in full compliance with the Constitution and the Electoral Act, 2022.
The rejection of electronic transmission of election results means presiding officers will not be able to send results in real-time from polling units.
According to local media ChannelsTV, instead of electronic transmission of results, the Senate adopted the existing provision of the Electoral Act, which states that “the presiding officer shall transfer the results, including the total number of accredited voters and the results of the ballot, in the manner prescribed by the Commission.”
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Meanwhile, lawmakers also amended Clause 28 on election notice, reducing the timeline from 360 days to 180 days.
According to the original provision, the commission was required to publish notice of election for each state of the federation and the FCT no later than 360 days before the election date. This has now been reduced to 180 days.
The Senate also rejected electronically generated voter identification, adopting the Permanent Voter Card as the mode of identification at polling units.
Various reactions have emerged following the Senate’s rejection of electronic result transmission.
The head of Yiaga, a civil society organization monitoring electoral matters, Samson Itodo, stated that what the Senate passed ‘is not reform.’
“Today, the Nigerian Senate rejected electronic transmission of results, blocked the download of electronic voter cards from INEC’s website, reduced notice of election from 360 days to 180 days, and cut down the timeline for publishing the list of candidates from 150 days to 60 days.”
In his Facebook post, Itodo described the rejection as a betrayal of public trust that will increase logistical challenges during elections.
“These compressed timelines will increase the risk of logistical problems during elections. What the Senate passed today is not reform, but a betrayal of public trust and a deliberate attempt to weaken all safeguards for credible elections.”
However, Senate President Godswill Akpabio maintains that their action was not a rejection of electronic transmission of results, but rather a retention of the previous provision in the Electoral Act amendment bill.
Mr. Akpabio denied rejecting electronic transmission of results, stating that his administration would not do such a thing.
“We have retained what was in the previous provision by way of amendment. The previous provision already made allowance for electronic transmission, so it remains part of our law and we cannot afford to go backwards,” he stated.
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