The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has announced the addition of 177,914 new voters in preparation for the upcoming gubernatorial elections in Edo and Ondo States. Edo’s election is scheduled for September 21, 2024, and Ondo’s will occur on November 16, 2024.
According to a statement released by Sam Olumekun, the National Commissioner and Chairman of the Information and Voter Education Committee, the new voter registrations are broken down as follows: Edo State has 119,206 new voters, while Ondo State has 58,708.
Olumekun explained that this update follows the preliminary figures disclosed on June 11, 2024. These initial figures were released before the period allowed for claims and objections and the subsequent data cleaning process using the Automated Biometric Identification System. This process is now complete, and the final numbers for new voters are confirmed as 119,206 for Edo and 58,708 for Ondo.
It is important to note that these figures do not include 8,847 voter transfer applications into Edo State and 3,132 into Ondo State from other regions. Additionally, applications for transfers within Edo and Ondo have already been included in the current voter register.
Olumekun further clarified that the numbers provided do not account for these transfer applications or internal state transfers as they have already been integrated into the existing voter lists. The new voter registrations and inter-state transfers are being updated in the voter register.
INEC will release the final and complete voter register for both states in the near future. The comprehensive register will be used for the gubernatorial elections in Edo and Ondo.
