The Pathfinder
Friday February 20, 2026
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The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has decided to use the newly signed amended electoral law for the elections taking place on Saturday.
INEC will oversee the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Area Council elections alongside critical bye-elections in Rivers and Kano states, serving as a litmus test for the Electoral Act 2026 recently assented to by President Bola Tinubu.
Meanwhile, INEC Chairman, Professor Joash Amupitan (SAN) said the FCT polls would involve 1,680,315 registered voters across 2,822 polling units in all six Area Councils.
Simultaneously, the commission will conduct bye-elections in Rivers State for the Ahoada East II and Khana II State constituencies, as well as in Kano State for the Kano Municipal and Ungogo State constituencies.
The 2026 Electoral Act introduces several high-stakes adjustments that the commission must now navigate in real-time. Key among these is the statutory entrenchment of the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System, BVAS, and the Election Results Viewing Portal, IReV.
As the FCT elections represent the only local government-level polls directly conducted by INEC, observers view this weekend as a strategic rehearsal for the 2027 general elections.
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