No fewer than 110 political associations have formally approached the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) seeking registration as political parties ahead of the 2027 general elections.
By Chimezie Godfrey
No fewer than 110 political associations have formally approached the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) seeking registration as political parties ahead of the 2027 general elections.
INEC Chairman, Professor Mahmood Yakubu, made the revelation on Wednesday during the Commission’s second quarterly consultative meeting with media executives held in Abuja.
Yakubu disclosed that, as of Monday, June 23, 2025, the Commission had received letters of intent from the 110 groups and is currently processing them in strict accordance with the Electoral Act, as well as INEC’s Regulations and Guidelines.
“As of Monday, 23rd June 2025, the Commission has received letters of intent from 110 associations that wish to register as political parties. We are diligently processing the requests in line with the procedure outlined in the law as well as our Regulations and Guidelines,” Yakubu said.
He added that acknowledgement letters had already been sent to most of the applicants, with only six pending requests expected to be acknowledged by the end of the week.
In a bid to reinforce public confidence in the Commission’s impartiality, Yakubu firmly denied allegations that INEC was compromising its independence or giving preferential treatment to high-profile promoters of some associations.
“We will treat all requests fairly, irrespective of the status of their promoters, be they ordinary or prominent citizens,” he stressed.
He further described such allegations as not new, recalling similar claims made in 2013 which turned out to be baseless.
To ensure public transparency, Yakubu announced that INEC would soon publish the full list of the 110 political associations—including their proposed names, acronyms, addresses, and the names of their protem chairmen and secretaries—on the Commission’s official website and social media platforms.
He also reminded the public that the Commission’s 2022 Regulations and Guidelines for Political Parties are readily available on the INEC website.
On other electoral developments, the INEC boss disclosed that the Commission is now prepared to conduct pending by-elections and resume the nationwide Continuous Voter Registration (CVR) exercise.
“I am glad to announce that the Commission is now in a position to conduct the bye-elections and to resume the nationwide CVR,” he said.
“The Commission met yesterday and we are finalising the details of the two activities, which will be made public in the next 24 hours.”
Yakubu concluded the briefing by acknowledging the media’s pivotal role in the electoral process and urged continued collaboration going forward.
“We look forward to your support,” he said.
The surge in political associations comes amid growing political mobilisation as Nigeria gradually approaches the 2027 general elections, signaling what could be a significantly expanded and more competitive political landscape.