By Myke Uzendu, Abuja
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has dismissed claims that voters were relocated to new polling units during the February 21, 2026 Area Council elections in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), while also expressing concern over voter apathy despite an improvement in turnout.
In a press release signed by the Acting Director of Voter Education and Publicity, Wilfred Ifogah, the commission clarified that no voter was migrated from their original polling unit. INEC explained that it only created split polling units in overcrowded centres with more than 1,250 registered voters to reduce congestion, noting that the additional units were located just a few metres from the original polling points within the same premises.
The commission acknowledged that some voters experienced difficulty locating their designated polling units but stressed that the register of voters had been displayed at designated centres four days before the election to enable verification. It added that text messages and emails were sent to affected voters between February 18 and 21 as reminders of their split polling unit locations.
INEC said it remained concerned about voter apathy but noted a significant improvement compared to the 2022 Area Council elections. According to the commission, over 239,210 voters — representing about 15 per cent of the 1,680,315 registered voters in the FCT — participated in the 2026 polls, up from 148,685 voters (9.4 per cent) recorded in 2022.
The electoral body confirmed that it successfully conducted elections for chairmanship positions in the six Area Councils and 62 councillorship seats. Results were announced late Saturday, except for Kuje Area Council, which was declared at about 3:30 p.m. on Sunday due to collation delays.
According to INEC’s Election Operations Dashboard, about 45 per cent of polling units opened by 8:30 a.m., while all polling units were fully operational by 10:00 a.m. on election day.
The commission further disclosed that as of 2:00 p.m. on Sunday, 93 per cent of polling unit results had been uploaded to the INEC Result Viewing (IReV) portal for public access.
INEC attributed the delay in announcing the Kuje Area Council result to the difficult terrain in Kabi Ward, which slowed the final collation process, and commended FCT residents for their peaceful conduct throughout the exercise.
