The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has removed 1,609,553 records from the National Register of Voters following a clean-up of the 2025/2026 Continuous Voter Registration (CVR) exercise.
The commission also disclosed that 54 persons across 10 states have been identified as complicit in registration irregularities and may face disciplinary action and prosecution.
INEC Chairman, Professor Joash Amupitan, SAN, announced this on Monday, November 9, 2026, during a press conference on the display and publication of the Preliminary Register of Voters at the commission’s headquarters.
Amupitan explained that the figure comprises 1,608,660 confirmed invalid registrations and 873 records belonging to verified deceased persons, which were removed as a separate category.
He said INEC harvested 11,088,238 registration records from the three phases of the 2025/2026 CVR exercise, while its Automated Biometric Identification System (ABIS) initially flagged 1,545,052 records for further examination.
The INEC chairman cautioned that being flagged by the automated system did not automatically mean a registration was invalid, stressing that each case had to undergo authorised review and adjudication before a final decision was made.
According to him, 1,277,052 registrations had been confirmed invalid and excluded before the publication of the Preliminary Register. Following objections, claims and complaints received during the display exercise, another 268,000 cases were subjected to adjudication.
Of the 268,000 cases, Amupitan said 217,722 were confirmed invalid and removed, while 50,278 were cleared as valid and retained. An additional screening exercise identified 113,886 further invalid registrations, bringing the post-display removals to 331,608.
“The Commission confirms that the current register-cleaning exercise for the 2025/2026 Continuous Voters Registration (CVR) has been concluded,” he said.
Amupitan said the scale of the irregularities prompted the commission to investigate how they occurred and identify those responsible.
He disclosed that the technical assessment examined suspected multiple registrations, unusual registration patterns, substituted photographs and irregularities in registration transactions.
The investigation, according to him, found instances in which some registration personnel deliberately bypassed established procedures and misused provisions designed for exceptional registration circumstances, including those involving persons with disabilities.
The chairman said the affected records had been identified and subjected to review and remediation, while the personnel implicated in the irregularities had been identified for further administrative investigation.
“Fifty-four persons cutting across ten States have been identified as complicit and necessary disciplinary action will be taken against them, including possible prosecution,” Amupitan said.
He added that INEC was strengthening its registration processes through improved biometric capture, authentication and verification safeguards to prevent a recurrence.
The development follows complaints, claims and objections submitted by members of the public during the display of the Preliminary Register of Voters at ward level between October 9 and 15, 2026, as well as its subsequent online publication.
Some Nigerians had raised concerns over allegedly manipulated photographs, duplicate registration attempts, unusual names and registration patterns, and the inclusion of deceased persons in the voters’ register.
There were also allegations that some of the irregularities were deliberate attempts to compromise the credibility of the 2027 general elections.
INEC’s latest announcement comes as the commission seeks to strengthen the integrity of the voters’ register ahead of the next general elections.
