The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has confirmed the removal of 7,746 deceased voters from Nigeria’s national voter register across the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory as of December 2022.
Victoria Etta-Messi, INEC’s Director of Voter Education and Publicity, disclosed the update on Thursday, underscoring the commission’s efforts to maintain an accurate voter database. “Seven thousand, seven hundred and forty-six deceased persons across the 36 states and the FCT were removed from the National Register of voters as of December 2022,” she said.
Despite these advancements, INEC acknowledged ongoing challenges in ensuring a clean register during its 2023 post-general election review held in December 2024. A significant issue is the lack of reliable official death records, which complicates the removal of deceased voters.
“Problems with official death records continue to make it very difficult for INEC to remove deceased registrants,” the commission stated. It emphasized the need for enhanced collaboration with agencies such as the National Population Commission (NPC) and the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) to address the issue effectively.
INEC also highlighted progress in tackling double and multiple voter registrations. Through its Automated Biometric Identification System (ABIS), the commission identified and removed 2,780,756 invalid registrations, representing 22.6% of new registrants.
Concerns over declining voter turnout were raised during the review. The 2023 presidential and National Assembly elections recorded a turnout of 27.5%, a significant drop from the 35.6% seen in 2019. Stakeholders attributed this decline partly to an inflated voter register and proposed measures to address it, such as suspending individuals who have not voted in the last three elections and requiring them to revalidate their registration.
INEC reaffirmed its commitment to improving the voter registration process and addressing these challenges to strengthen electoral integrity in future elections.
