Voter Pre-registration: Again, South West tops, as registration hits 2.5M

By Mercy Folounsho

The Independent National Electoral Commission in an update on the ongoing nationwide Continuous Voter Registration, says over 2.5 million Nigerians have completed their online pre-registration since the exercise commenced on August 18, 2025.

In a statement released on Tuesday, the National Commissioner and Chairman of the Information and Voter Education Committee, Sam Olumekun, disclosed that as of Sunday, August 31, 2025, a total of 2,532,062 Nigerians had successfully pre-registered online.

“The exercise, which started on Monday, 18th August 2025, is now in its second week. As of Sunday, 31st August 2025, a total of 2,532,062 Nigerians pre-registered online.

“Last week, the commission published the detailed breakdown of the figure at the end of Week One of the exercise.

According to the commission, Osun State recorded the highest number of pre-registrations with 474,372. Lagos followed with 355,372, while Ogun came third with 265,399. The Federal Capital Territory accounted for 152,250, Borno had 135,661, Oyo recorded 128,231, Kaduna had 127,852, Kogi reported 124,239, Kebbi had 113,884, and Yobe registered 101,622.

Ekiti followed with 60,556, Kwara had 57,132, Delta recorded 47,718, Niger had 45,580, Imo registered 33,415, Sokoto recorded 32,517, Kano had 29,042, Katsina reported 28,587, Bauchi had 26,729, Akwa Ibom recorded 22,638, Nasarawa had 23,374, Plateau registered 20,447, Rivers had 18,147, Benue recorded 16,186, Jigawa had 16,755, Zamfara registered 12,381, Gombe had 11,179, Taraba recorded 10,177, Bayelsa had 9,549, Cross River recorded 9,340, Edo had 6,373, Ondo recorded 6,784, Adamawa had 5,383, and Abia reported 1,845. Enugu and Ebonyi had the lowest with 856 and 490, respectively.

Also, INEC noted that in-person registration commenced on August 25, 2025.

By August 29, the commission reported that 72,274 individuals had completed their registration, either by finalising their pre-registration or through new in-person enrolment.

“The in-person registration commenced on Monday, 25th August 2025. Within five days as of Friday, 29th August 2025, a total of 72,274 citizens have either completed the pre-registration process or registered afresh, out of which 35,622 (49.29 percent) are male and 36,652 (50.71 percent) are female.

“In terms of age and occupation, the majority of them – 54,718 (75.71 percent) – are between the ages of 18 and 34, while 30,953 (42.83 percent) are students,” he said.

The commission expressed satisfaction with the turnout so far and acknowledged the contributions of civic groups aiding the process.

“The commission appreciates the positive response of citizens and the efforts of the organisations that have mobilised civic participation in the exercise,” Olumekun noted.

Meanwhile, INEC in Osun State has dismissed claims by the African Democratic Congress that figures from the ongoing Continuous Voter Registration exercise were manipulated.

INEC, in a statement signed by its Public Relations Officer, Musa Olurode, on behalf of the Resident Electoral Commissioner, Mutiu Agboke, said the numbers recorded so far reflected Osun’s history of strong civic engagement and should be celebrated as evidence of democratic awareness rather than disparaged.

“The ADC’s claim of ‘statistical implausibility’ is untrue. The figures recorded so far are consistent with the state’s history of active civic engagement and should rather be celebrated than discredited with baseless insinuations,” the statement read in part.

INEC noted that Osun had consistently ranked high in voter mobilization, recalling that the state led all others in online pre-registration during the CVR exercise preceding the 2022 governorship and the 2023 general elections.

“The people of Osun State have shown, time and again, their uncommon commitment to electoral participation, which translated into massive voter mobilization and impressive registration figures. It is pertinent to emphasize that online pre-registration is only the first step in the voter registration process,” the Commission added.

INEC urged political parties to cross-check facts before making public allegations and advised them to channel their energy into sensitizing and mobilizing eligible Nigerians to register.

“This is the path of responsibility and patriotism expected of registered political parties in a democracy,” the statement concluded.