ABUJA — The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has reaffirmed that the nationwide Continuous Voter Registration (CVR) exercise will conclude today, Sunday, July 26, 2026, with no further extension.
The commission urged all eligible Nigerians who have not yet registered to take advantage of the remaining hours of the exercise before the registration window closes.
In a post on its official X handle on Saturday, INEC emphasized that all designated registration centres across the country would operate from 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. on the final day.
“Your future won’t wait. Neither should you. The Continuous Voter Registration (CVR) exercise ends Sunday, 26 July 2026,” the commission stated.
INEC also reminded prospective voters that registration could still be completed through its online CVR portal or by visiting designated INEC offices and registration centres nationwide for physical enrolment.
The commission explained that under the Electoral Act 2022, voter registration, updates and revisions to the voters’ register must be suspended at least 90 days before any election to allow sufficient time for data clean-up, the production of Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs), and other logistical preparations.
The law also provides for the display of the voters’ register for claims and objections before the final register is certified for elections.
According to the commission, the ongoing registration exercise is aimed at ensuring that all eligible Nigerians are captured in the national voters’ register ahead of future elections.
INEC’s latest statistics, covering Phase III, Week Nine of the exercise as of July 17, 2026, indicate that 2,970,257 eligible Nigerians had successfully registered.
Of the total figure, 970,865 registrants (33.79 per cent) completed their registration online, while 2,000,092 (66.21 per cent) registered physically at designated centres.
Women accounted for 1,561,765 registrations (52.57 per cent), while 1,409,192 men (47.43 per cent) registered during the exercise.
Youth participation remained significant, with 2,003,183 Nigerians aged between 18 and 34 years, representing 67.43 per cent of all registrants.
The commission also reported that 645,651 persons aged 35 to 49, 294,443 aged between 50 and 69, and 27,680 persons aged 70 years and above registered during the exercise.
By occupation, students recorded the highest number of registrations with 695,026, followed by business owners (626,523), farmers and fishermen (505,402), and housewives (480,682). Other registrants included artisans (152,184), traders (133,834), civil servants (74,507) and public servants (47,778).
INEC further disclosed that 32,361 persons living with disabilities were successfully registered during the exercise.
State-by-state statistics showed that Kano State recorded the highest number of new registrations with 234,305, followed by Lagos (140,546) and Edo (139,313).
Other states with high registration figures included Delta (132,330), Taraba (113,409), Ebonyi (111,344), Sokoto (109,076), Ogun (96,571), Bauchi (96,061), Jigawa (95,592), Kaduna (92,505), Benue (88,840), Oyo (88,716), Imo (88,155), Anambra (87,195), Nasarawa (86,914), Cross River (86,559), Bayelsa (80,425), Niger (76,841), Kwara (76,084), Katsina (74,896), Gombe (74,152), Yobe (71,382), Kebbi (70,859), Kogi (69,713), Adamawa (65,505), Borno (44,866), the Federal Capital Territory (41,700), and Plateau (31,352).
Meanwhile, the CVR exercise remains suspended in Osun State ahead of the forthcoming governorship election in compliance with Section 9(6) of the Electoral Act 2022.
With the deadline expiring today, INEC has encouraged all eligible Nigerians who are yet to register to complete the process before the close of registration.
