Nigeria’s Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), the federal agency that organises elections in Africa’s most populous country, has released a timetable for the 2027 general elections and announced plans for a “mock presidential election” to test its electronic result transmission process.
INEC Chairman Professor Joash Amupitan, Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), disclosed the plans at a news conference in Abuja, Nigeria’s capital, on Friday, February 13, 2026. He said the Presidential and National Assembly elections will hold on Saturday, February 20, 2027, while Governorship and State Assembly elections are scheduled for Saturday, March 6, 2027.
The commission said the mock presidential election is intended to verify the reliability of its electronic systems, including the Result Viewing Portal (IReV), which is used to publicly display polling unit results, and the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS), the technology used to confirm voter identity before voting. Okay News reports that the planned test is part of INEC’s effort to address public concerns about technical problems that have damaged confidence during past election cycles.
Despite legislative debates in Nigeria’s National Assembly over how election results should be transmitted, Amupitan said the commission is not stepping back from electronic transmission, adding: “No matter how it ends, we already have our policies. I think that we should ensure that the results are transmitted,” he said.
INEC also said that the publication of the statutory Notice of Election now activates key deadlines for political parties, particularly around the conduct of primaries and internal decision-making. Amupitan warned parties against missing the timelines and urged peaceful processes, saying: “Political parties are strongly advised to strictly adhere to the timelines. The Commission will not hesitate to enforce compliance with the law. I call on political parties to conduct peaceful and credible primaries, to shun violence and inflammatory rhetoric, and to uphold internal democracy,” he cautioned.
On election costs, the INEC chairman linked rising budgets to the scale of operations, noting that each polling unit requires four poll officers. He said inflation, foreign exchange fluctuations, and the cost of training nearly 450,000 temporary election workers all have a major impact on spending.
He also rejected claims that INEC plans to spend Nigerian naira (₦) ₦1 trillion (about $738 million) on the election, using a mid-market conversion of about ₦1,354 to $1 on Friday, February 13, 2026. He further denied reports suggesting INEC intended to divert funds to build hospitals, explaining that any procurement of medical supplies relates to clinics already run by the commission.
Explaining the election dates, Amupitan said INEC followed Nigeria’s 1999 Constitution (as amended) and the Electoral Act 2022, including the requirement to publish a Notice of Election at least 360 days before polling day.
He added that some states will remain on different election calendars due to court decisions that altered previous terms of office. He cited Anambra State in south-eastern Nigeria, Bayelsa State in the Niger Delta region, and Edo State in southern Nigeria as examples of states with “off-cycle” governorship elections.
As preparations begin, INEC called on security agencies, the media, civil society groups, political parties, and other stakeholders to treat the 2027 elections as a shared national responsibility.
