The Nigeria Civil Society Situation Room has described the June 20 Ekiti State Governorship Election as largely peaceful but raised concerns over vote buying, low voter turnout, and procedural inconsistencies. Speaking at a post-election press briefing in Abuja, Situation Room Co-Conveners Celestine Okwudili Odo and Mma Odi said observers were deployed across all 16 local government areas of the state to monitor the exercise. The group noted that election officials and materials arrived on time in most polling units, with voting commencing as scheduled in about 92 percent of locations observed.
However, delays were reported in some areas due to logistical challenges and technical issues involving the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS). Situation Room said BVAS functioned satisfactorily in most polling units but recorded isolated failures, particularly in accrediting elderly voters through facial recognition. The group also reported that more than 85 percent of polling unit results were uploaded to the INEC Result Viewing Portal (IReV) by election night, enhancing transparency in the process. Despite the generally orderly conduct of the election, observers documented incidents of alleged vote buying and voter inducement in several polling locations.
Situation Room further expressed concern over discrepancies in election materials, noting that while INEC announced 14 participating political parties, ballot papers displayed 19 parties and result sheets reflected 15. According to the coalition, the inconsistency may have misled voters and contributed to invalid votes cast for parties that did not field candidates in the election. The group also highlighted accessibility challenges for persons with disabilities and elderly voters, citing inaccessible polling units, poor placement of voting cubicles, and limited disability-friendly resources.
On voter participation, Situation Room said only about 35 percent of eligible voters took part in the election despite over one million registered voters having collected their Permanent Voter Cards. The coalition warned that persistent voter apathy reflects growing concerns about public confidence in elections, political parties, and governance outcomes. Situation Room called on INEC, security agencies, political parties, civil society groups, and lawmakers to address electoral shortcomings, curb vote buying, improve voter confidence, and strengthen democratic participation ahead of the 2027 general elections.
