The Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, has declared its full operational, technological and logistical readiness for the Ekiti State Governorship Election scheduled for Saturday, 20 June 2026.
The Commission’s Chairman, Prof. Joash Amupitan, SAN, will personally oversee a final pre-election meeting with key stakeholders in Ado-Ekiti on Thursday, 11th June 2026.
Nine days to the Ekiti State Governorship Election, Amupitan addressed the Ekiti State Governorship Election Stakeholders’ Forum, giving a detailed readiness profile and issuing direct responsibilities to political parties, security agencies, the media and civil society to ensure a credible electoral process.
The INEC Chairman disclosed that the Commission has a clean, legally verified Register of Voters, now with 1,059,360 registered citizens, an increase from the 2023 figure of 987,647, after the successful addition of 66,664 new registrants during Phases I and II of the Continuous Voter Registration, CVR, initiative. He also stated that ABIS has effectively nullified 2,103 cases of double registration, which has helped to improve the integrity of the voter roll.
The voters will be spread across 16 Local Government Areas, 177 Registration Areas (Wards), and 2,445 Polling Units, and the Commission is targeting the activation of all polling units simultaneously at exactly 8:30 a.m. on Election Day.
On the technological infrastructure of the Commission, Prof. Amupitan confirmed that the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System, BVAS, will be used in all the 2,445 Polling Units as the only tool for voter authentication and accreditation. Also, all results at the polling level will be sent directly to the INEC Result Viewing Portal, IReV, for real-time public verification.
“No PVC, No Accreditation, No Voting,” the Chairman said firmly, “There will be no bypasses, no exceptions.”
He also announced the introduction of assistive technologies, including Braille ballot guides and magnifying glasses for people with albinism and those living with disabilities, underscoring that equity in electoral access is “a necessity, not an afterthought.”
Prof. Amupitan said INEC in full collaboration with the Inter-Agency Consultative Committee on Election Security (ICCES) had done detailed threat mapping across the state, identifying localized vulnerabilities such as political thuggery and ballot disruption in some areas. He said that the EFCC and the ICPC had been contacted to safeguard all 2,445 Polling Units from the impact of vote-buying and financial inducement.
“We will protect the ballot box from physical violence and from fiscal contamination,” he declared.
Speaking on the Peace Accord signed by all 13 political parties contesting the elections on 21 May 2026, the Chairman commended party leadership for this public show of democratic civility but warned that this gesture must be mirrored by actual behaviour on the ground.
“An accord has value only as long as its signatories act in good faith,” Prof. “ Amupitan said. “The Peace Accord is not a mere ceremonial formality. Your party officials, polling agents, and grassroots supporters must deeply internalize and strictly adhere to its principles.”
The INEC Chairman said that the Commission had approved 91 media organisations and dispatched 675 journalists from print, broadcast and new media, and 98 observer groups from 96 domestic and two international organisations to monitor every aspect of the electoral process in Ekiti State.
He called on members of the press to report accurately, fairly and with professional integrity, describing their role as constitutional rather than merely logistical.
He charged the accredited observer groups to deploy strictly in accordance with Commission guidelines, to remain neutral in conduct and appearance throughout the process, and to present findings with fidelity to fact, affirming INEC’s full co-operation with every accredited journalist and observer.
Amupitan also put the Ekiti election in a broader national context, revealing that the Commission would also conduct legislative bye-elections on 20 June 2026 in six states: Enugu North, Nasarawa North, Rivers South East, and Ondo South Senatorial Districts, Dawakin Kudu/Warawa Federal Constituency in Kano State, and Zuru State Constituency in Kebbi State.
“There is no dilution of the focus of the institution,” he assured stakeholders. “The same rigorous operational standards, technological safeguards and stringent security arrangements will be used for these concurrent bye-elections as they were for the Ekiti Governorship Election.”
In his remarks, the Resident Electoral Commissioner for Ekiti State, Dr. Bunmi Omoseyindemi, assured the gathering that preparation had gone far, with non-sensitive materials already received and managed in line with established procedures. He said sensitive materials would be deployed by next week, training of election personnel was ongoing and logistics arrangements were being finalised. He said, “We are maintaining continuous engagement with security agencies, political parties, civil society organisations, traditional institutions and the media. “Earlier today, the Commission met with the Ekiti State Council of Traditional Rulers.
CP Michael Falade, the Commissioner of Police, Ekiti State, assured the forum that the Nigeria Police Force and all security agencies were fully deployed and would remain professional and impartial in the protection of voters, candidates and electoral officials throughout the process.
Hon. Adeniji Akinropo Philip, Ekiti State Chairman of the Inter-Party Advisory Council (IPAC), in a speech on behalf of all political parties, called for peaceful conduct and constructive inclusivity, urging parties to see themselves as members of a common community rather than rivals in a winner-takes-all contest. He also called on INEC to give all parties a level playing field.
Earlier today, Prof. Amupitan led a strategic consultative meeting with the Ekiti State Council of Traditional Rulers before the Stakeholders’ Forum. He presented the full readiness profile of the Commission and formally enlisted the moral and traditional authority of the royal fathers in the cause of peaceful electoral conduct across Ekiti communities.
At that engagement, the Chairman disclosed findings from the Commission’s empirical risk mapping, highlighting specific local government areas with elevated security concerns. Ado-Ekiti, Effon, Ekiti South West, Ikere, Irepodun/Ifelodun and Oye were identified as vulnerable to political thuggery, cultism and attempted ballot disruption while Emure, Ikole, Ilejemeje and Moba were identified as requiring heightened security vigilance due to asymmetric threats including kidnapping. He revealed that 469 polling units had been identified within a 500-metre critical radius of these risk locations, with synchronised inter-agency deployments planned to provide robust protection.
The Chairman appealed to the royal fathers to deploy their traditional authority to call on candidates and political actors in their various domains to remind them that the Peace Accord signed on 21 May 2026 must be respected in every village and ward. “ He also called on the Council to use traditional town criers, ward chiefs and community channels to mobilise subjects for PVC collection and early turnout by 8:30 a.m. on Election Day.
On the issue of vote-buying, Prof. Amupitan directly appealed to the traditional rulers to use their platforms to fight what he described as an ethical contamination of the democratic process.
He told the royal assembly: “The Fountain of Knowledge must lead the nation in showing that electoral choices cannot be bought.
He assured the Council of his personal assurance that INEC has no candidate in the election, reiterating that the Commission’s only allegiance is to the Constitution, the Electoral Act and the sovereign will of the Ekiti people.
