Nine States, 8,890 Polling Units: INEC Unveils Extensive Plans for February 3 Re-run and By-Elections

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) is gearing up for the February 3 re-rerun and by-elections in 2024, with plans to deploy at least 8,500 Bimodal Verification Accreditation System (BVAS) machines, as revealed by official sources.

In a recent announcement via its X handle, INEC confirmed that a total of 8,890 polling units will be involved in these elections, emphasizing the scale and significance of the electoral process.

The elections are set to take place across nine states in Nigeria, covering 4,294 polling units for the by-elections and 4,596 polling units for the reruns. Senatorial district elections are scheduled for Ebonyi South in Ebonyi State and Yobe East in Yobe State.

For the state constituencies, INEC will oversee elections in Chibok State Constituency (Borno State), Chikun State Constituency (Kaduna State), and Guma State Constituency (Benue State). Additionally, elections are scheduled to take place in various federal constituencies and senatorial districts across different states in Nigeria.

The states where federal constituencies will hold elections include Ondo, Taraba, Lagos, and Kebbi. There will also be court-ordered re-run elections in 4,596 polling units, covering one senatorial district of Plateau Central and 12 federal constituencies.

Furthermore, state-level elections will be conducted to fill vacant positions in Adamawa, Akwa Ibom, Bauchi, Bayelsa, Cross River, Delta, Enugu, Kaduna, Kano, Nasarawa, Niger, Oyo, Sokoto, Zamfara, Benue, and Borno states.

According to reports from The PUNCH, a total of 4,567,689 Nigerians are expected to participate in the forthcoming election across 8,890 polling units on February 3, 2024. INEC plans to provide a minimum of one BVAS machine per polling unit, along with additional backup BVAS units, to ensure a seamless electoral process.

The definitive list of candidates for the elections will be officially released on January 17, marking the beginning of the campaign period, which is projected to conclude on February 1.

As the nation anticipates this crucial electoral event, all eyes are on INEC to execute a transparent and successful voting process.