2027: Delay in Electoral Act amendment can affect election schedule – Amupitan

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has said the timing of Electoral Act amendment could affect the 2027 election schedule.

INEC Chairman, Prof. Joash Amupitan, said this during an engagement with Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) on Wednesday in Abuja.

He said despite the delay in the passage of the amended Electoral Act currently before the National Assembly, the commission was ready for the 2027 general elections.

Amupitan said the commission had already submitted its recommendations on the proposed amendments to lawmakers and is now awaiting legislative action.

He explained that the timing of the amendment to the Electoral Act could affect some aspects of the election schedule, noting that certain activities in the timetable may require adjustments depending on when the National Assembly concludes work on the bill.

The INEC chairman, however, stressed that the commission remains committed to conducting a credible election.

According to him, until the amended Electoral Act is passed and signed into law, INEC will continue to discharge its duties in line with the existing legal framework.

Former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar had alleged that the delay of the National Assembly to pass the Electoral Act is a ploy to rig the 2027 elections.

The Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, presidential candidate in the last election, argued that the major setback to the last election was the loopholes in the “Electoral Act 2022 that paved the way for the brazen rigging of that election”.

Atiku had claimed that the same loopholes also made it near impossible for petitioners to advance their cases in the courts.

On Tuesday, the Senate adjourned plenary after a closed door session that lasted over four hours without making public the outcome of their deliberations.

Among the items listed on the Senate Order Paper for the day include the consideration of the Report of the Committee on Electoral Matters on Electoral Act, 2022 (Repeal & Enactment) Bill, 2026 (SB. 903).

Returning to plenary after its long closed door session, the Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, who didn’t give any details on the outcome of their session, simply said the lawmakers deliberated on matters that concern the “Senate in particular and the National Assembly in general.”

He went on to call for a motion for adjournment to the next legislative day (Wednesday).

The Senate has come under pressure in recent times over its delay in passing the amendment to the 2022 Electoral Act, a development, stakeholders in electoral process, said, could affect the 2027 general elections.

On January 28, the Senate deferred consideration of the report on the Electoral Act, 2022 (Repeal and Enactment) Bill, 2026, opting to first subject the proposed amendments to further internal scrutiny through an executive session.

Protesters comprising members of civil society organisations, had last week stormed the National Assembly calling on the Senate to pass the Electoral Act Amendment Bill 2025 without further delay.

The protesters, who carried placards bearing various inscriptions, raised alarm over the delay by the National Assembly, particularly the Senate, in passing the piece of legislation which they described as important to having a free, fair and credible election in 2027.

Among inscriptions on the placards include: “No more delay, pass the bill now”; “prioritise the Electoral Act 2025; “Electoral Reform now”; “Make our elections better; “Don’t alter the bill, pass it and “Take legislative action on the Electoral Act Amendment Bill now”.

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