INEC Confirms Removal of 7,746 Deceased Voters From National Register
Kehinde Fajobi
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has confirmed that 7,746 deceased voters were removed from Nigeria’s voter register across the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory as of December 2022.
INEC’s Director of Voter Education and Publicity, Victoria Etta-Messi, made this disclosure on Thursday, reiterating the commission’s dedication to maintaining an accurate register.
“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 stated.
However, INEC acknowledged persistent challenges, particularly difficulties in identifying deceased registrants due to insufficient official death records.
“Problems with official death records continue to make it very difficult for INEC to remove deceased registrants,” the commission noted, calling for enhanced collaboration with agencies like the National Population Commission (NPC) and the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) to address the issue.
INEC also reported significant progress in addressing double and multiple registrations. Using the Automated Biometric Identification System (ABIS), the commission flagged and removed 2,780,756 invalid registrations, accounting for 22.6% of new registrants.
Concerns over declining voter turnout were raised during INEC’s 2023 post-general election review in December 2024.
The 2023 presidential and National Assembly elections recorded a turnout of 27.5%, a drop from 35.6% in 2019.
Stakeholders attributed the decline partly to an inflated voter register and proposed measures 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 voter registration and addressing these issues to ensure enhanced electoral integrity in future elections.