2027 polls: Senate adjusts notice period over Ramadan

The Senate on Tuesday reconvened for an emergency plenary and dissolved into the Committee of the Whole to rescind and recommit the Electoral Act, 2022 (Repeal and Enactment) Bill, 2026, following the release of the 2027 general election timetable by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).

INEC had fixed February 20, 2027, for the presidential and National Assembly elections, and March 6, 2027, for governorship and state Houses of Assembly polls. The timetable sparked concerns that the presidential and National Assembly elections could fall within the Ramadan period.

For the second time in one week, the Senate reworked the Electoral Act Amendment Bill, rescinding its earlier decision and amending Clause 28 to reduce the statutory notice period for elections from 360 days to 300 days. The adjustment gives INEC more flexibility to schedule elections between December 2026 and January 2027, thereby avoiding a clash with Ramadan. Lawmakers argued that holding elections during the fasting period could negatively affect voter turnout, logistics, stakeholder engagement and overall inclusiveness.

The rescission followed a motion sponsored by Senate Leader, Opeyemi Bamidele, who cited discrepancies in several clauses of the bill, including issues of cross-referencing, numbering and internal consistency. He relied on provisions of the Senate Standing Orders to justify reopening deliberations on a bill already passed.

During clause-by-clause consideration, proceedings turned rowdy at Clause 60, which deals with electronic transmission of election results. Senator Enyinnaya Abaribe called for a division, seeking the removal of the proviso that allows manual collation using Form EC8A where electronic transmission fails.

After heated exchanges, consultations and a closed-door session that lasted nearly an hour, the Senate proceeded to vote. In a division moderated by Senate President Godswill Akpabio, 55 senators voted to retain the proviso allowing manual transmission where network failure occurs, while 14 lawmakers mostly from the opposition, voted against it.

With the vote, the Senate again rejected mandatory real-time electronic transmission without manual fallback, maintaining that where technology fails, the signed Form EC8A will serve as the primary source of election results.

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