The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has released figures showing the states with the highest numbers of registered voters ahead of the 2027 general elections, with Lagos State topping the list.
INEC Chairman, Professor Joash Amupitan, disclosed the figures on Tuesday in Abuja while providing an update on the commission’s preparations for the 2027 elections.
According to the figures announced by the electoral body, Lagos has the highest number of registered voters with 7,488,633, followed by Kano State with 6,570,276 and Kaduna State with 4,662,640.
Katsina occupies the fourth position with 3,876,051 registered voters, while Rivers State ranks fifth with 3,736,434.
Oyo State has 3,588,111 registered voters, placing it sixth on the list, while Delta State follows closely with 3,525,988.
Benue State ranks eighth with 3,057,225 voters. Ogun State is ninth with 3,037,981, while Bauchi completes the top 10 with 3,012,547 registered voters.
The top 10 states are:
- Lagos — 7,488,633
- Kano — 6,570,276
- Kaduna — 4,662,640
- Katsina — 3,876,051
- Rivers — 3,736,434
- Oyo — 3,588,111
- Delta — 3,525,988
- Benue — 3,057,225
- Ogun — 3,037,981
- Bauchi — 3,012,547
INEC UPDATES NATIONAL VOTER REGISTER
Amupitan also disclosed that Nigeria’s voter register had undergone significant updates following the completion of the three phases of the Continuous Voter Registration exercise and a final biometric verification process.
He said more than 10.6 million new applicants were captured during the CVR exercise and that the new registrations were subjected to verification through the Automated Biometric Identification System (ABIS).
According to the INEC chairman, the commission’s voter register had grown to more than 103 million.
However, another figure of about 110 million was also cited during the event, creating a discrepancy in the national total. INEC’s publicly displayed figures also differ, meaning the state-by-state numbers announced by the chairman are best treated as the figures specifically presented during Tuesday’s briefing.
PVC COLLECTION TO BEGIN
As part of preparations for the 2027 elections, INEC is also set to commence nationwide collection of newly issued Permanent Voter Cards.
The commission announced that PVC collection will begin on October 9, 2026, following the completion of processing and distribution of the first batch of cards to local government collection centres.
The 2027 presidential and National Assembly elections are scheduled for January 16, 2027, while the governorship and State House of Assembly elections will take place on February 6, 2027.
With the election date approaching, INEC says the updated voter register, PVC distribution and other preparations are aimed at ensuring that eligible Nigerians are able to participate in the electoral process.
