Nigeria Senate Passes Electoral Act Amendments, Rejects Mandatory Real-Time Upload of Results

Pat Stevens/

Nigeria’s Senate has passed amendments to the Electoral Act 2022 without making real-time electronic upload of election results mandatory, rejecting a proposal that would have compelled immediate transmission of results to the Independent National Electoral Commission’s Result Viewing portal, known as IReV.

The amendments were approved on Wednesday during plenary, following the consideration of a report by the Senate Committee on Electoral Matters.

A motion by Senator Tahir Monguno, which sought to require polling unit results to be uploaded to IReV in real time after endorsement by party agents, was defeated.

Instead, lawmakers retained the existing provision that allows election results to be transmitted “in a manner as prescribed by the Commission”, a clause that gives INEC discretion over how and when electronic transmission is deployed.

The decision follows controversies surrounding the 2023 general elections, during which INEC’s failure to upload results in real time to the IReV portal triggered legal disputes, public protests and widespread allegations of electoral malpractice.

Although electronic transmission was permitted under the 2022 Act, it was not explicitly mandated, a gap that critics argue contributed to the glitches recorded during the polls.

Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, clarified during the debate that the amendments do not prohibit electronic transmission of results.

He stressed that the Senate merely declined to impose rigid timelines in the law, leaving operational details to INEC.

However, the move has drawn sharp criticism from civil society groups and election observers.

Samson Itodo, Executive Director of Yiaga Africa, described the Senate’s decision as “a betrayal of public trust”, arguing that mandatory real-time uploads are essential to transparency and credibility in future elections.

Beyond the IReV provision, the Senate also approved changes that shorten certain electoral timelines, including deadlines related to party primaries and the conduct of elections.

Critics have warned that compressed timelines could create logistical challenges for INEC and political parties, potentially affecting election preparedness.

The amended bill will now be harmonised with the version earlier passed by the House of Representatives before being transmitted to President Bola Tinubu for assent.

Any differences between both chambers must be reconciled by a conference committee.

INEC has consistently maintained that while technology remains central to Nigeria’s electoral process, legal clarity and operational flexibility are necessary to manage infrastructure constraints, especially in remote areas.

As the country prepares for future electoral cycles, the Senate’s refusal to mandate real-time uploads is expected to remain a focal point of debate, with transparency advocates warning that unresolved ambiguities in the law could undermine public confidence in Nigeria’s elections.