By Ameh Gabriel
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) held its regular meeting today, Thursday, 11th September 2025, during which it reviewed preparations for the forthcoming off-cycle governorship elections and the end-of-tenure Area Council election in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT). The Commission also considered the report of its Committee on the Review of Letters of Intent from associations seeking registration as political parties.
This was contained in a statement signed by Sam Olumekun, National Commissioner & Chairman, Information and Voter Education Committee on Thursday, 11th September 2025
According to the statement, a total of 171 requests for registration were received and assessed in line with the provisions of Section 222 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (as amended), Section 79 (1, 2 and 4) of the Electoral Act 2022, and Clause 2 (i and ii) of the Commission’s Regulations and Guidelines for Political Parties, 2022.
Following this review, 14 associations met the preliminary requirements to proceed to the next stage, while 157 did not. The Commission will formally communicate the outcome of today’s meeting to all associations within the next 24 hours.
The list of the 14 pre-qualified associations has been published on the INEC website and other official platforms for public information. Their interim Chairmen and Secretaries are invited to a briefing scheduled for Wednesday, 17th September 2025, at 11:00am at the Commission’s Headquarters in Abuja.
As part of the next steps, INEC will conduct a physical verification of all claims submitted by the pre-qualified associations, in line with its Regulations and Guidelines. The final determination of their registrability as political parties will be made after this verification exercise to ensure full compliance with the legal framework.
The Commission reiterates that political party registration is a continuous process under the law. INEC remains open to receiving and reviewing applications that satisfy all legal requirements.
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