The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has removed 1,608,660 invalid voter registrations from the national voters’ register as part of efforts to strengthen its credibility ahead of the 2027 general elections.
INEC Chairman, Prof. Joash Amupitan, disclosed this on Monday while briefing journalists in Abuja on the outcome of the commission’s review of the Preliminary Register of Voters.
Amupitan explained that the exercise also led to the removal of records belonging to deceased persons and the identification of registration officials allegedly involved in electoral irregularities.
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He said 54 officials across 10 states had been identified for possible disciplinary action, including prosecution, over their alleged roles in the irregularities discovered during the registration process.
According to the chairman, INEC received 11,088,238 registration records from the three phases of the 2025/2026 Continuous Voter Registration exercise.
He explained that the commission’s Automated Biometric Identification System initially flagged 1,545,052 records for further investigation. However, he clarified that being flagged did not automatically mean a registration was invalid, as each record had to undergo additional checks.
Amupitan disclosed that 1,277,052 registrations were initially confirmed invalid and removed before the preliminary voters’ register was published.
He added that during the public display of the register between October 9 and 15, the commission received complaints, claims and objections that led to the review of another 268,000 records.
Following the review, 217,722 registrations were declared invalid and removed, while 50,278 were found valid and retained.
The chairman further revealed that another screening exercise uncovered 113,886 invalid registrations, bringing the total number of records removed to 1,608,660.
He said the clean-up followed concerns raised by Nigerians and civil society organisations over multiple registrations, manipulated photographs, suspicious registration patterns and the inclusion of deceased persons in the voters’ register.
The commission also discovered cases where some registration officials allegedly bypassed established procedures and abused special provisions meant to assist people with disabilities during registration.
Amupitan said the affected records had been identified and subjected to verification, while officials suspected of involvement had been referred for further investigation.
He stated that 54 officials from 10 states had been identified as allegedly complicit in the irregularities and could face disciplinary measures or prosecution.
The INEC chairman, however, acknowledged that the latest exercise would not completely address all concerns surrounding the voters’ register, as some questionable records dated back to previous registration exercises conducted between 2011 and 2023.
He said the commission was also working to identify and remove older duplicate registrations and other suspicious records after proper verification.
Addressing complaints from Nigerians who could not find their names in the preliminary register, Amupitan explained that some people who registered between 2011 and 2023 had registered again after relocating instead of transferring their existing records to their new polling units.
He said the biometric system invalidated the newer registrations, while their original voter records remained at their previous registration locations.
He therefore advised affected individuals to check their former polling locations before concluding that their names had been removed completely.
On concerns about the use of artificial intelligence-generated photographs to manipulate voter registration, the INEC chairman said the commission had identified cases involving altered images and was introducing additional safeguards.
He disclosed that INEC had directed its Director of Information and Communication Technology to stop external webcam-based photograph uploads, insisting that registration photographs must be captured through an approved application.
He added that the commission had also approved an Artificial Intelligence Governance Framework to guide the responsible use of the technology in its operations.
Amupitan assured Nigerians that INEC would continue working to protect eligible voters from wrongful exclusion while ensuring that invalid registrations were removed before the 2027 general elections.
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