The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has announced a fresh wave of interest from political associations, disclosing that it has received 12 new applications for registration as political parties, pushing the total number of requests to 122.
This development, contained in a statement on Thursday by Sam Olumekun, INEC’s National Commissioner and Chairman, Information and Voter Education Committee, underscores what appears to be a surge in political mobilization ahead of future elections.
As of the last general election, INEC had declared that it had only 18 duly registered political parties.
Olumekun revealed that the latest batch of applications includes critical details such as the names and acronyms of the groups, their proposed addresses, and lists of interim national chairmen and secretaries. The information has been published on INEC’s official website to ensure public access and transparency.
“The Commission is processing these applications transparently and in fairness to all applicants,” the statement read.
However, INEC expressed concern over internal inconsistencies among some of the applying associations, noting that at least one group had to replace its interim secretary following a defection to a rival faction.
“To facilitate the consideration of these applications, the Commission appeals to associations to maintain consistency of their proposed leadership and addresses so that they do not by their own actions cause a delay to the timely consideration of their applications,” Olumekun warned.
In a separate development, the Commission has released supplementary regulations and guidelines to clarify procedures for the review of election results in line with Section 65 of the Electoral Act 2022.
Citing varying interpretations of the section, Olumekun stated that INEC exercised its legal authority to issue a new document titled Supplementary No. 1 to the Regulations and Guidelines for the Conduct of Elections 2022. The document lays out the procedures and timelines for reviewing election outcomes and has also been made publicly available.
The surge in political party applications, combined with INEC’s regulatory updates, signals a season of growing political activity and heightened preparations for upcoming electoral cycles.
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