Osogbo, Nigeria – The Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in Osun State, Mrs. Oluwatoyin Babalola, announced during a media briefing that the state is fully prepared for the 2027 general elections, citing the success of the August 15 governorship election as a benchmark for future polls.
Speaking to journalists in Osogbo, Babalola praised the media’s professionalism and urged continued partnership to promote accurate information, responsible political communication and voter education. “I urge you to sustain this commendable partnership with the Commission by continuing to promote accurate information, responsible political communication, constructive public discourse, and voter education, while resisting the temptation to disseminate unverified information capable of undermining public confidence or threatening the peace of our state,” she said.
The REC highlighted that, despite a high voter turnout in August, INEC has already begun continuous voter education and enlightenment programmes, and has held capacity‑building workshops for staff covering the Collation Support and Result Verification System (CSRVS), the Electoral Operations Support Centre (EOSC), and the Election Monitoring and Support Centre (EMSC) reviews, among others. “We have successfully executed nine out of the fourteen major scheduled activities for the 2027 elections,” Babalola added, noting that the remaining key dates are: the Official Register of Voters on 15 December 2026, the Notice of Poll on 29 December 2026, the end of campaigns for President and National Assembly on 14 January 2027, the presidential and National Assembly elections on 16 January 2027, the end of campaigns for Governorship and State House of Assembly on 4 February 2027, and the governorship and State House elections on 6 February 2027.
On voter registration, Babalola reported that 1,903,390 Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs) – 81.5 % of the total – were collected before the August election, with 427,216 remaining uncollected. Since then, an additional 7,547 PVCs have been gathered, raising the collection rate to 81.74 % and reducing the uncollected proportion to 18.26 %.
Recruitment and technology updates included the opening of the ad‑hoc election officials portal (pres.inecnigeria.org) on 18 September 2026, closing on 18 November 2026, and the availability of 5,763 functional Bimodal Voter Accreditation Systems (BVAS) for direct result uploading to the INEC Result Viewing Portal (IReV). The media accreditation portal for the 2027 elections opened on 30 October 2026 and will close on 1 December 2026.
“INEC remains steadfastly committed to continuous improvement, accountability, and the delivery of credible democratic processes in the state,” Babalola affirmed.
<small>Source: The Sun Nigeria — read the original story there.</small>
