The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has published the revised Register of Voters for the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) ahead of the February 21, 2026, Area Council Election, with the number of registered voters increasing to 1,680,315.
INEC presented the updated register in Abuja on Wednesday, January 14, 2026, during a stakeholders’ meeting with political parties. Speaking at the meeting, the Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) for the FCT, Malam Aminu Idris, described the exercise as a critical constitutional requirement in the Commission’s preparations for the election.
Malam Idris recalled that the nationwide Continuous Voter Registration (CVR) exercise resumed on August 18, 2025, starting with online pre-registration, followed by physical registration from September 29, 2025. He explained that, in line with Section 9(6) of the Electoral Act, 2022, the CVR was suspended in the FCT on October 12, 2025, to allow for the revision of the voters’ register for the Area Council polls.
According to him, the revision process—carried out pursuant to Section 10(6) of the Electoral Act—included biometric de-duplication, public display of the register for claims and objections, and the compilation of a supplementary list. He noted that the revised register now supersedes all previous voters’ registers in the FCT.
The REC disclosed that the number of registered voters rose from 1,570,307 in 2023 to 1,680,315, adding that detailed voter statistics were made available to political parties at the meeting.
Briefing stakeholders on INEC’s readiness for the election, Malam Idris said the Commission has concluded several key activities, including monitoring of party primaries, publication of final lists of candidates, commencement of campaign monitoring, receipt of non-sensitive materials, activation of the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS), voter education and sensitisation, stakeholder engagement, and collaboration with security agencies through the Inter-Agency Consultative Committee on Election Security (ICCES).
The February 21 election will fill 62 councillorship seats and six chairmanship positions across the six Area Councils in the FCT.
The REC urged political parties and candidates to maintain the prevailing peaceful atmosphere in the FCT and step up voter mobilisation ahead of the polls.
He also announced that Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs) for newly registered voters, as well as those who applied for transfer or updates during the CVR exercise, have arrived in the FCT, noting that the Commission would soon announce the date for PVC collection.
Meanwhile, INEC has resumed the Continuous Voter Registration exercise in Anambra State.
The CVR was earlier suspended on July 20, 2025, to enable the Commission clean up the voters’ register and produce PVCs ahead of the November 8, 2025, governorship election in the state.
- The resumption of the exercise at the INEC State Office and the 21 Local Government Area offices in Anambra will allow eligible voters to register, update their details, apply for replacement of lost or damaged PVCs, and transfer their voting locations ahead of the 2027 General Election.