The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) on Saturday initiated the first off-cycle elections since the 2023 general elections, with residents of Bayelsa, Imo, and Kogi states casting their votes to determine their governors for the next four years.
A total of 46,084 regular and ad-hoc staff have been deployed across the three states, and 126 national and international organizations, along with 11,000 observers, are accredited for the elections. Additionally, 80 media organizations have applied to deploy 1,203 personnel, including journalists and technical/support staff.
Security measures are robust, with 92,565 police personnel mobilized, including helicopters and gunboats. The Federal Road Safety Corps has also deployed 1,500 operatives and 105 vehicles.
INEC Chairman, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, revealed that the elections will be held in 10,470 polling units across 649 electoral wards in 56 local government areas.
Voting commenced around 08:30 am in observed polling units, following the arrival of INEC officials with sensitive and non-sensitive materials.
Over five million voters are expected to participate in the elections, with the outcome potentially influenced by the significant representation of youths and middle-aged individuals, comprising over 60% of the total PVCs collected in the three states.
In Imo State, registered voters are 2,419,922, with 2,318,919 PVCs collected. In Kogi, there are 1,932,654 registered voters, and 1,833,160 PVCs collected, while Bayelsa has 1,056,862 registered voters and 1,017,613 PVCs collected.
Sixteen political parties are sponsoring candidates in Bayelsa, and 18 in both Imo and Kogi, with elections taking place in 10,470 polling units across the 56 local government areas in the three states.
INEC has deployed nine Resident Electoral Commissioners (RECs) and two national commissioners to each state, with 46,000 staff overseeing the elections.
The Result Viewing Portal (IReV) is assured to work smoothly despite previous glitches experienced in the technology during the February 25, 2023 presidential poll.
