By Joy Odor
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) says it has concluded all arrangements for bye-elections scheduled to hold in 16 constituencies across 12 states on Saturday, August 16, 2025.
In a statement issued on Thursday after its weekly meeting by Sam Olumekun, the National Commissioner and Chairman, lnformation & Voter Education committee, the Commission said the polls will cover two Senatorial Districts in Anambra and Edo States, five Federal Constituencies in Edo, Jigawa, Kaduna, Ogun and Oyo States, as well as nine State Constituencies in Adamawa, Anambra, Kaduna (2), Kano, Kogi, Niger, Taraba and Zamfara States.
The statement informed that two court-ordered re-run elections, in Enugu South 1 State Constituency of Anambra and Ghari/Tsanyawa State Constituency of Kano will also be conducted simultaneously.
According to him, non-sensitive materials have been delivered to the states, the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) has been configured, and ad hoc staff recruitment and training completed. Security and logistics arrangements have also been finalised, while the last batch of sensitive materials was due for delivery on Thursday.
Olumekun reminded political parties that campaigns must end by midnight on Thursday and urged all stakeholders political parties, candidates, voters, agents, observers, and the media to strictly follow the law and electoral guidelines to ensure peaceful, credible polls.
INEC also announced that nationwide Continuous Voter Registration (CVR) will resume on Monday, August 18, with online pre-registration.
He mentioned that physical registration will commence a week later, on Monday, August 25, at the Commission’s 811 state and local government offices.
The CVR will allow citizens to register for the first time, transfer their voting location, or replace lost or damaged Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs).
Only Nigerian citizens aged 18 and above who have never registered before are eligible. INEC warned that multiple registrations are illegal and punishable under the law.
Following the conclusion of political party primaries for the February 21, 2026 Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Area Council elections, INEC said it received 637 nominations from 17 political parties for 68 positions, six council chairmanships and 62 councillorship seats.
From Monday, August 18, the personal particulars, academic credentials, and other documents of all candidates will be displayed at INEC offices in the six Area Councils.
The Commission urged the public to scrutinise the documents and noted that any aspirant with evidence of false claims can challenge a candidate’s nomination in court.
The final list of candidates will be published on September 22, 2025, in line with the Electoral Act 2022.
