Senate Passes Electoral Act Amendment Bill after a Heated Debate on e-Transmission
On February 17, 2026, the Senate approved the Electoral Act Amendment Bill. This new law will change how future elections are run, aiming for fairer and smoother processes.
Exciting news for Nigerian democracy! On February 17, 2026, the Senate approved the Electoral Act Amendment Bill. This new law will change how future elections are run, aiming for fairer and smoother processes. But getting it passed wasn't easy; there was a lot of debate. The most disputed issue was how results travel from the polling unit to the collation centre.
The main argument was over Clause 60. This part of the bill deals with sending results from polling units (where you vote) to the main counting centres. Some senators, like Enyinnaya Abaribe, wanted only electronic transmission to prevent cheating. They felt a "manual backup" (sending paper results) could open doors for problems like altering figures or swaps.
However, opponents replied that networks fail in rural areas. After a rowdy session, the chamber voted by a show of hands, with 55 members endorsing a manual backup and 15 rejecting it.
The Senate decided to keep the manual option as a fallback. This means that if electronic systems fail due to a bad network or technical issues, paper results can still be used.
What else changed?
The bill made other important updates: Election Notice: The time limit for announcing an election before it happens was cut from 360 days to 180 days.
Candidate Lists: Political parties now have to submit their candidate lists 90 days before an election, down from 180 days.
Voting Machines: The bill officially recognises the BVAS (Bimodal Voter Accreditation System), making it the main technology for checking voters.
PVC Offences: If someone buys or sells a Permanent Voter's Card (PVC), the fine has gone up from ₦2 million to a much steeper ₦5 million.
Voter ID: The physical PVC remains the only accepted form of identification for voters; digital IDs were not included.
NEXT
This bill isn't the law yet. The House of Representatives has its own version, and both chambers need to agree on a final text. A special committee of 12 members (6 from the Senate, 6 from the House) will work to combine the two versions. Once they agree, it will go to President Bola Tinubu to sign it into law. This final step is expected by the end of February 2026.
This is a big moment for Nigeria's elections, promising clearer rules and stronger systems.
