The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has announced that the ongoing Continuous Voter Registration (CVR) exercise in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) will now be conducted at the ward level.
In a statement issued on Saturday in Abuja, Sam Olumekun, INEC’s National Commissioner and Chairman of the Information and Voter Education Committee, disclosed that the exercise would run from September 29 to October 8.
According to the statement obtained by The News Chronicle, Olumekun explained that the move aligns with the Commission’s practice of decentralizing registration ahead of major elections. He pointed out that the same approach had been adopted before the Edo and Ondo governorship polls in 2024 and more recently in preparation for the Anambra governorship election scheduled for November 8.
“Accordingly, the physical (in-person) registration currently taking place in the FCT office and the six Area Council offices of the Commission has been extended to all the 62 Wards, making a total of 69 centres.
The devolved registration will commence on Monday, 29th September, and end on Wednesday, 8th October, 2025,” he said.
The INEC Commissioner added that the online pre-registration portal for the FCT would be suspended on September 15 to allow individuals who had started the process online to complete it in person. “Consequently, the online pre-registration option in the FCT will be suspended on Monday, Sept. 15, to enable all pre-registrants to complete their registration at the designated physical (in-person) centres without which the online option alone is invalid,” he stated.
Olumekun clarified that voter registration would be suspended on October 8, in compliance with Section 9(6) of the Electoral Act 2022, which stipulates that the process must end at least 90 days before any election. The FCT Area Council elections are fixed for February 21, 2026.
He also announced that voter registration—both online and in-person—would resume after the February polls and continue until August 2026 when the nationwide exercise will be suspended ahead of the 2027 general elections.
Appealing to residents, he said: “Citizens who are registered voters elsewhere in the country may also transfer their registration to the FCT. Similarly, those who are already registered voters may transfer their registration to other parts of the FCT of their preference. However, no person should register more than once as double or multiple registration is a punishable offence under the law.”
He urged all eligible citizens to take advantage of the proximity of the exercise at ward level to register before the deadline. According to him, the list of centres and their addresses has been published on the Commission’s official website and other platforms for easy
access by the public.
