By Our Reporter

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has fixed November 28, 2026, for a nationwide mock accreditation and voting exercise to test upgrades to its Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) and electronic results transmission ahead of the 2027 general elections.

The commission also disclosed that it had commenced the distribution of non-sensitive election materials to some states as part of preparations for the forthcoming general elections.

INEC Chairman, Professor Joash Amupitan (SAN), announced the mock exercise on Thursday during a dialogue at Chatham House in London, organised in partnership with the Kimpact Development Initiative.

The event was themed, “Nigeria’s 2027 Elections: Democratic Trajectory and Regional Stability Beyond the Ballot.”

According to a press statement issued in Abuja and signed by the Chief Press Secretary and Media Adviser to the INEC Chairman, Adedayo Oketola, Amupitan said the exercise would simulate the presidential election and enable the commission to assess the effectiveness of its voter accreditation and electronic results transmission systems before the actual polls.

“On the 28th of this month, we will conduct a mock accreditation and voting exercise across all states of the federation to simulate the presidential election and verify that we have gotten both accreditation and electronic result transmission right,” the INEC chairman said.

He explained that the exercise was part of the commission’s efforts to identify and address possible technical challenges ahead of the elections, particularly those relating to voter accreditation and the electronic transmission of polling unit results.

Amupitan also disclosed that INEC had introduced additional technical safeguards to prevent inaccurate polling unit results and figures reflecting over-voting from being uploaded to its Result Viewing Portal.

The measures, he said, were intended to strengthen the integrity of the electoral process, improve transparency and enhance public confidence in the management and transmission of election results.