The National Assembly (NASS) yesterday highlighted the major reforms it carried out in the 2026 Electoral Act, which was recently passed and assented to by President Bola Tinubu, insisting that it will make the electoral process in Nigeria better.
In a statement released by the Directorate of Media and Public Affairs, Office of the Senate Leader, the National Assembly named creation of a dedicated fund for the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), mandatory electronic transmission of election results and creation of a digital membership register by all political parties, among others, as part of key reforms in the Electoral Act, 2026.
The new electoral governance framework, according to the parliament, equally mandates the INEC to deploy bimodal voters verification system (BVAS) for voters accreditation; recommend two-year jail imprisonment for the Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) that withholds vital documents; establish an electronic register of voters and review upward campaign funds for different elective offices.
Senate Leader, Senator Opeyemi Bamidele, provided the key highlights of the new regime in the statement, revealing how the legislative arm engaged diverse stakeholders for two years before its eventual enactment.
NASS had harmonised different versions of the Electoral Bill 2026 produced by its two chambers, especially with respect to Clause 60(3); passed the bill into law and transmitted it to the President for assent in order to avoid a constitutional crisis that might arise in the preparation of the 2027 general election.
The President had subsequently signed the Electoral Bill 2026 into law after 24 hours of its enactment, thereby completing the twoyear process of redrafting the new regime expected to shape the next elections positively. Part of the statement reads: “Although civil society organisations (CSOs) had questioned the speed at which the Electoral Bill 2026 was signed into law, the President observed that the essence of democracy was mainly to promote conversations aimed at deepening national development, nationbuilding and stability of the federation.
“Contrary to insinuations in some quarters, Bamidele explained how the National Assembly sustainably engaged the CSOs, INEC, Office of the Attorney-General of Federation (OAGF) and development partners, among others, for two consecutive years before the new electoral regime came into force.”
He said the making of the new regime “is a collective work that involves nearly all critical stakeholders. The National Assembly worked with such different stakeholders as OAGF, CSOs, INEC and our development partners, among others, before we eventually completed the process.
“As we were making progress, the stakeholders too were making their input, and all the inputs were incorporated in the Act. In view of the time constraint we are facing now, I do not believe the Executive requires days or weeks to review it before assent since we all contributed to it. Its outcome is not a unilateral effort of the parliament, but of Nigerians at large.”
Consequently, Bamidele explained the potential of the new electoral governance framework “to obviously strengthen institutional independence; enhance transparency in election management; improve technological integration and reinforce accountability mechanisms in the country’s election management system.
“Under Section 3, for instance, the Senate leader pointed out that the new legislation established a dedicated fund for the INEC, which according to him, would guarantee the financial autonomy, operational stability and administrative continuity of the commission.
“With this provision alone, according to Bamidele, INEC will operate with greater independence and quicker corrective powers. The section requires that election funds be released earlier, at least six months before the general election and expands INEC’s powers to review questionable result declarations made under duress or procedural violations.
