INEC Records 2.5m Online Pre-Registrations in 2 Weeks, Urges Physical Appearance to Complete Exercise 

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has recorded a total of 2,532,062 online pre-registrations across the country in the last two weeks.

ThelensNG had earlier reported that INEC recorded 69,376 pre-registrations after seven hours, and 1,379,342 in one week.

In a statement on Tuesday, the National Commissioner and Chairman of INEC’s Information and Voter Education Committee, Sam Olumekun, disclosed the new figure while providing a report on the ongoing nationwide Continuous Voter Registration (CVR) for both online and in-person registration of voters.

On the online pre-registration, Olumekun stated: “The exercise which started on Monday 18th August 2025 is now in its second week. As at Sunday 31st August 2025, a total of 2,532,062 Nigerians pre-registered online.

“Last week, the Commission published the detailed breakdown of the figure at the end of Week One of the exercise. The cumulative figure at the end of Week Two shows that 1,218,482 (48.12%) are male and 1,313,580 (51.88%) are female. In terms of age and occupation, the majority – 1,602,484 (63.29%) – are between the ages of 18 and 34, while 647,528 (25.57%) are students.”

He reiterated that these are the pre-registration figures from the Commission’s dedicated CVR portal, noting that the introduction of the pre-registration option in 2021 has enabled Nigerians to commence the online process from anywhere in the world 24 hours a day, including weekends.

“However, all online pre-registrants are required to appear physically to complete the process in our 811 State and Local Government offices nationwide where their fingerprints and facial biometric details will be captured. This instruction is clearly stated on the online portal. We urge all online pre-registrants to complete the process in-person at the INEC designated registration centres without which the online process alone is invalid,” Olumekun said.

Regarding in-person registration, he acknowledged that INEC is aware that there are Nigerians who have no access to online facilities or those who prefer to register in-person.

“Consequently, our staff have been deployed to attend to eligible citizens at the Commission’s 811 State and Local Government offices nationwide where they can simultaneously begin and complete their registration. The centres are open from 9.00am – 3.00pm daily (Monday to Friday). The list and addresses of the centres have already been made public.

“The in-person registration commenced on Monday 25th August 2025. Within five days as at Friday 29th August 2025, a total 72,274 citizens have either completed the pre-registration process or registered afresh out of which 35,622 (49.29%) are male and 36,652 (50.71%) are female. In terms of age and occupation, majority of them – 54,718 (75.71%) – are between the ages of 18 and 34, while 30,953 (42.83%) are students.”

The Commission affirmed that graphic details of the distribution of registrants at the end of week two of the online and week one of the in-person registrations by state, gender, age, occupation, and disability have been uploaded to its website and other official platforms for public information.

It appreciated the positive response of citizens and efforts of the organisations that have mobilised civic participation in the exercise.