The Nigerian Senate has voted against making electronic transmission of election results compulsory, insisting that digital uploads remain part of the country’s electoral framework but under the discretion of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
During clause-by-clause consideration of the Electoral Act (Amendment) Bill, lawmakers rejected a proposal to amend Clause 60(3), which would have required presiding officers to transmit polling unit results electronically to INEC’s Result Viewing portal immediately after signing result forms.
Instead, the Senate retained the current provision, which allows results to be transmitted “in a manner as prescribed by the Commission”. The decision leaves it to INEC to determine how and when results are uploaded, rather than mandating real-time digital transmission by law.
Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, addressed concerns following the vote, clarifying that lawmakers had not scrapped electronic transmission entirely. He emphasized that the Senate simply chose not to impose a mandatory requirement, noting that electronic uploads already exist under current law and were used during previous elections.
Akpabio explained that the Senate’s approach preserves operational flexibility for INEC, particularly in areas with connectivity challenges. Under the Electoral Act 2022, the commission is empowered to use technology such as BVAS and the IReV portal, but electronic transmission is not legally compulsory.
This framework enabled digital uploads during the 2023 general elections, despite the absence of a statutory obligation for real-time transmission.
The Senate urged the public to distinguish between rejecting electronic transmission outright and rejecting compulsory enforcement, reiterating that digital reporting remains a key tool in Nigeria’s electoral process.
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