Millions of Nigerians who will be old enough to vote in 2027 could lose that opportunity if voter registration remains closed long before the election.
Development Diaries reports that the Director of the Abuja School of Social and Political Thought, Sam Amadi, has criticised the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) for closing the Continuous Voter Registration (CVR) exercise well ahead of the 2027 general election, arguing that the decision risks excluding many eligible citizens from the electoral process.
The concern goes beyond election administration because the Electoral Act describes voter registration as a continuous process, meaning eligible Nigerians should be able to register as they attain voting age or update their records as their circumstances change.
Every month the register remains closed leaves newly eligible young people, citizens who have relocated and voters seeking to transfer their registration waiting for access to a process the law intended to remain open.
Civil society organisations are attempting to reduce that exclusion through technology, with the Tap Initiative for Citizens Development, working with the National Endowment for Democracy and the National Election Accountability Consortium, launching iReportINEC.
It is understood that iReportINEC is a digital platform that enables citizens to report electoral incidents, monitor reforms, and strengthen public accountability throughout the electoral cycle. But while such platforms can strengthen citizen participation, they cannot register a single voter while INEC keeps the register closed.
INEC has defended the early closure on planning and logistical grounds; however, every day registration remains suspended increases the number of eligible citizens who cannot register before preparations for the 2027 election gather momentum.
The burden falls unevenly across the country, with Nigeria’s median age still below 19, meaning millions of young people become eligible to vote between one election and the next.
Citizens relocating for work or education also depend on continuous registration to transfer their voting locations, while rural communities with fewer registration centres face even greater barriers whenever access to registration is restricted.
Section 77 of Nigeria’s constitution guarantees universal adult suffrage, while the Electoral Act requires INEC to maintain a CVR. Closing that register years before an election leaves millions of eligible Nigerians without practical access to a right the law guarantees.
Section 77 of Nigeria’s constitution guarantees universal adult suffrage, while the Electoral Act requires INEC to maintain CVR, stopping only within the statutory period before an election.
Although the law allows INEC to determine the registration timetable, it was designed to ensure that Nigerians do not have to wait years before exercising a constitutional right simply because they became eligible after the last registration window closed.
That gap explains why civic technology alone cannot solve the problem, as platforms such as iReportINEC can strengthen transparency and public participation, but they cannot replace accessible voter registration, particularly for low-income and rural Nigerians who remain least connected to digital services.
The credibility of the 2027 general election will be judged long before the first ballot is cast. A voter register described by law as continuous should keep expanding as Nigerians become eligible to vote, not remain inaccessible while millions of potential voters continue waiting outside it.
Citizens should register or verify their voter status as soon as registration becomes available, help newly eligible young people complete the process, report registration gaps through iReportINEC, and demand that state INEC offices publish the number and location of active registration centres.
INEC should reopen or extend CVR and publish a timetable guaranteeing access throughout 2026, while expanding registration centres in rural and underserved communities and publicly reporting registration coverage across every local government area.
