Nigeria’s voter register is set for a major boost after the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) announced that 3,867,997 Nigerians successfully completed the Continuous Voter Registration (CVR) process during the eleventh week of Phase III ahead of the 2027 general elections.
Fresh figures released by the electoral commission show that women accounted for the largest share of new registrations. A total of 2,037,589 women registered, representing 52.68 per cent of all completed registrations, while 1,830,408 men made up the remaining 47.32 per cent.
INEC disclosed that 1,170,134 registrations were completed through its online platform, while 2,697,863 Nigerians registered physically at designated centres across the country, reflecting continued participation in both digital and in-person registration channels.
Young Nigerians remained the driving force behind the exercise. According to the commission, citizens aged 18 to 34 years accounted for 2,602,960 registrations, representing 67.29 per cent of the total. Registrants between 35 and 49 years numbered 843,757, while 386,095 were aged between 50 and 69 years. Another 35,185 registrants were aged 70 years and above.
On occupational distribution, students emerged as the largest group with 892,946 registrations. They were followed by business owners with 810,452, farmers and fishers with 649,358, and housewives with 640,569. Other registered groups included artisans (204,660), traders (175,206), civil servants (97,328) and public servants (65,114).
The commission also reported that 41,092 persons with disabilities (PWDs) participated in the exercise. Among them were 7,038 persons with albinism, while others included people who are blind, deaf, autistic, physically challenged, of little stature, living with Down syndrome, spinal cord injuries and cognitive learning disabilities.
A state-by-state breakdown showed that Kano recorded the highest number of completed registrations with 330,906, followed by Lagos (181,254), Delta (166,895), Edo (156,150), Ebonyi (146,507) and Sokoto (145,160). Ekiti recorded the lowest number with 2,276 registrations, while Ondo posted 23,824. INEC explained that no registration took place in Osun State because of the upcoming governorship election, noting that the suspension complies with Section 9(6) of the Electoral Act 2022.
INEC added that the figures remain provisional and will undergo data clean-up, public claims and objections, as well as verification through the Automated Biometric Identification System (ABIS) before the final voter register for the 2027 general elections is published.
