Ahead of the governorship elections scheduled for September 21 in Edo State and November 16 in Ondo State, the Independent National Electoral Commission announced that it would resume the Continuous Voter Registration exercise in both states.
This move aims to enable eligible voters to participate in the upcoming elections.
During the second regular quarterly consultative meeting with political parties in Abuja, INEC Chairman, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, disclosed this development. He stated that the Commission had already finalized the list of candidates for the Edo State Governorship election. The campaign by political parties commenced on April 24, 2024, and will end on September 19, 2024, 24 hours before the election day.
Yakubu emphasized the importance of maintaining law and order during the electioneering process. He reminded political parties to adhere strictly to the timeline for uploading the list of polling and collation agents to the dedicated portal.
In Edo State, the Commission is expecting 76,823 polling unit agents and 3,587 ward, local government, and state collation agents from the 17 participating political parties. In Ondo State, eighteen political parties conducted primaries monitored by the Commission.
Yakubu urged political parties to adhere strictly to the deadline for the nomination of candidates in Ondo State, which is 6 pm on May 20, 2024. Parties were given 23 days from the end of primaries to prepare and submit the list of only two candidates (Governorship candidate and running mate) to the Commission.
As the elections in both states approach, INEC decided to resume the Continuous Voter Registration exercise. This will enable eligible citizens who are not registered voters to register. Additionally, registered voters will have the opportunity to transfer their registration from other states to Edo and Ondo States or from one location to another within the two states.
Yakubu emphasized that the CVR is only open to new registrants and those who seek to transfer their registration. He warned against double or multiple registration, stating that it is illegal. Lost or damaged voters’ cards will be replaced during the exercise without requiring fresh registration.
The CVR in Edo and Ondo States will take place simultaneously from May 27, 2024, to June 5, 2024, from 9:00 am to 3:00 pm daily, including weekends. Considering the limited time to the Governorship elections, the Commission decided to conduct the registration at ward level and state headquarters instead of local government offices and a few designated centers as in the past.
This decision means that there will be 192 ward registration centers in Edo State and 203 centers in Ondo State, in addition to the state offices in Benin City and Akure, totaling 397 walk-in registration centers in the two states.
Yakubu stated that there would be no online pre-registration option in the two states due to time constraints. Each center will be managed by two officials drawn from the commission’s regular staff and the National Youth Service Corps.
The Commission will commence the training of at least 794 officials for the exercise in the next few days. The locations of the registration centers, as well as other relevant information, have been compiled in a detailed 28-page document included in the meeting folders. The same information will be uploaded to the INEC website and social media platforms for public information shortly.
In addition to voter registration, the Commission will make available the uncollected Permanent Voters’ Cards for collection during the CVR. The list of uncollected PVCs will be published in INEC offices in the two states and simultaneously uploaded to the website. Yakubu urged those who have not collected their PVCs in the two states to seize the opportunity to do so.
