The Independent National Electoral Commission has disclosed the final figures for newly registered voters ahead of the Edo and Ondo State Governorship elections.
According to the announcement, Edo State has registered 119,206 new voters, while Ondo State has 58,708.
The National Commissioner and Chairman of the Information and Voter Education Committee, Sam Olumekun made this announcement in a press release issued on Monday.
He explained that these figures follow the completion of the data verification process using the Automated Biometric Identification System, which was conducted after the initial release of preliminary numbers on June 11, 2024.
“Nigerians may recall that in our Press Statement on Tuesday, 11th June 2024, we released the preliminary figures of newly registered voters for the forthcoming Edo and Ondo State Governorship elections.
“These were before the period for claims and objections, followed by the cleaning up of the data using the Automated Biometric Identification System. These processes have now been concluded,” Olumekun stated.
He further noted that the new voter registration numbers do not include the 8,847 applications for voter transfers into Edo State and 3,132 into Ondo State from other regions of the country.
Additionally, applications for transfers within Edo and Ondo States have already been incorporated into the voter register.
“The number of new voters for Edo State is 119,206 and 58,708 for Ondo State. These figures do not include the 8,847 applications for transfer into Edo State and the 3,132 into Ondo State from other States of the Federation.
Similarly, they do not include applications for transfer within the two States because they are already captured on the register of voters. The figures of the new voters and inter-state transfers are being integrated into the existing register,” Olumekun clarified.
INEC is set to release the comprehensive and final register of voters for both states in the coming days. Olumekun added that detailed analyses of the new voters, categorized by local government areas, gender, age, occupation, and disability status, have been uploaded to INEC’s website and social media platforms to ensure public transparency.
The Edo Governorship election is scheduled for September 21, 2024, with seventeen political parties fielding candidates.
The Ondo Governorship election will take place on November 16, 2024, with seventeen political parties also presenting candidates, although no female candidates are among those running for governorship in Ondo State.
