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  The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) on Saturday announced new dates for the 2023 elections. The new date announced by the National Chairman of the commission, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu at a news conference in the Federal Capital (FCT), Abuja. According to him, the Presidential and National Assembly elections will now hold on Saturday, February 25, 2023, while governorship and state houses of assembly elections will hold on March 11, 2023. Yakubu explained that the new date is to allow for conformity with the provisions of the Electoral laws which stipulates that elections notice be published at least 260 days to the elections. Below is a full transcript of the chairman's statement today; "As you are aware, yesterday, Friday 25th February 2022, the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria signed the Electoral Bill 2022 into law. This is historic being the fourth time since the restoration of democracy in Nigeria in May 1999 that the Electoral Act w...

The candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Senator Smart Adeyemi, has won the Kogi West senatorial district election.The Returning Officer of the election, Professor Olajide Lawal, announced this on Saturday at the collation centre in Kogi State.According to him, Senator Adeyemi polled a total of 88,373 votes to beat Senator Dino Melaye of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) who scored 62,133 votes.Ambassador Rufus Aiyenigba of the Social Democratic Party (SDP) came third in the poll with 659 votes and was trailed by John Olabode and Adeyemi Taiwo of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) and Nigeria Elements Progressive Party (NEPP who) garnered 262 and 119 votes respectively.The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) declared the APC candidate as the winner of the keenly contested election two weeks after the people of the senatorial district went to the poll.This came after the supplementa...

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has fixed Nov. 30 for the conduct of supplementary and re-run elections for Kogi West Senatorial District and Ajaokuta Federal Constituency respectively. In a statement, Mr Festus Okoye, INEC National Commissioner and Chairman, Information and Voter Education Committee, said the decision was taken at the meeting held on Thursday in Abuja. He recalled that at the conclusion of the court-ordered Kogi West Senatorial re-run election on Saturday, supplementary polls were indicated by the Collation/Retuming Officer for the Senatorial District. The affected areas includes 20 Registration Areas, 53 Polling Units and 46,767 Registered Voters spread across seven Local Government Areas of the Senatorial District. “In addition, the court ordered the conduct of Supplementary re-run poll in Ajaokuta Federal Constituency affecting 22 Polling Units.” Okoye said that collation procedures shall be in line with extant Guidelines for Collation at the...

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has suspended the collation of results of the governorship election in Kogi State.The Returning Officer for the election and Vice-Chancellor of Ahmadu Bello University (ABU), Zaria, Professor Ibrahim Umar, announced this on Sunday in Lokoja, the Kogi State capital.Professor Umar told party agents and other political stakeholders present at the INEC office where the collation of results took place that the exercise would continue by 9am on Monday.He explained that the announcement was necessary as the results of the election in the remaining two local governments have yet to be brought to the collation centre.The announcement followed the collation of results of the election in 19 out of the 21 local government areas (LGAs) in Kogi.Those collated so far are Adavi, Ajaokuta, Ankpa, Bassa, Dekina, Idah, Igalamela-Odolu, Ijumu, and Kabba/Bunu LGAs.Others are Koton Karfe, Mopa-Muro, Ofu, Ogori/Magongo, Okehi, Okene, Olamaboro, Omala, Ya...

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has declared inconclusive the Kogi West senatorial election on the ground that the lead margin between Mr Smart Adeyemi who polled 80,118 votes and Dino Melaye who got 59,548 is 20,570 which is lower than the 43,127 registered voters in 53 polling units of 20 registration areas in the zone.The returning officer, Professor Olayinde Lawal who declared the election inconclusive said, he is constrained by law to declare a winner because of the lead margin between the leading candidates.He added that INEC will announce a new date for the conduct of a supplementary election in the 53 polling units before a winner can be returned.source:Channels Television

The Deputy Inspector General of Police, Operation, AbdulMajeed Ali, has warned those planning to snatch ballot boxes during Saturday’s elections in Kogi and Bayelsa States to have a rethink as the police will not condone such behaviour.“Anyone caught will not be spared and will not live to do that ever again,” Ali said.Addressing a press conference on Thursday ahead of Saturday’s elections in Kogi and Bayelsa States, Ali, who is overseeing the Kogi elections said that the Inspector General had deployed enough personnel to adequately police the state and deal with any eventuality during the election.“We have enough personnel and capacity to deal with anyone that tried to foment trouble on Saturday. Just watch, if anyone tries to snatch ballot box on Saturday, he will pay dearly for it.“We are determined to provide the enabling environment for a peaceful election. We are tired of being held to ransom by Kogi and Bayelsa States every election period, we will put a stop to that this time ...