Electronic Transmission and Electoral Integrity: Examining the Legal Debates in the Electoral Act, 2026

CONTRIBUTOR: OLUGBADE JOHNSON ABIOLA

INTRODUCTION

The passage of the novel Electoral Act, 2026 was preceded by a heated debate over section 60(3) of the Act which made the electronic transmission of election results mandatory, but retained the physical Form EC8A as the only legally recognized result for collation and announcement.^[1] On one hand, critics of the provision derided it as a ‘cosmetic change’ that continues in the path trodden by its predecessors—the path responsible for decades of electoral manipulation.^[2] On the other hand, however, some legal jurists have commended the provision for its balance of innovation and realism, especially given Nigeria’s technological infrastructure capacity.^[3]

Apprised of these contentions, this paper seeks to critically, yet dispassionately, examine the provisions of the Electoral Act 2026, against the backdrop of other legal provisions, judicial renditions, and lived experiences in Nigeria’s electoral landscape. The subsequent section examines the origin and rationale of the electronic transmission of election results in Nigeria. Proceeding, the article critically examines the debate over section 60(3) of the Electoral Act, 2026. Finally, it proposes recommendations for the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), the National Assembly, and the electorate to help maintain electoral integrity in the forthcoming 2027 General Elections and beyond.

ELECTRONIC TRANSMISSION OF ELECTION RESULTS: ORIGIN AND RATIONALE

Electronic transmission of election results in Nigeria is not a novel phenomenon, according to INEC.^[4] Whilst it gained popularity in 2021 through the use of INEC’s result viewing portal (IReV) in off-cycle gubernatorial and legislative elections, electronic transmission of results has been a feature of Nigeria’s electoral landscape since 2011.^[5] The mode of transmission then was Short Messaging System (SMS), but the high error rate led to its early abandonment.^[6] Afterwards, the Commission experimented with transmission of election results via a private, highly-secure e-mail address, which later came to be known as the Collation Support and Result Verification System (CRSVS).^[7]

However, these efforts were invisible to the public eye, and whilst they improved efficiency, they did not regain public trust. This prompted the deployment of the IReV portal which enables Presiding Officers of Polling Units to take and upload images of the Polling Unit results (Form EC8As) where they can be viewed by the public.^[8] It was first used in the Nasarawa Central Federal Constituency bye-election in 2020 and it was subsequently used in 104 other off-cycle elections with a 99.13% success rate.^[9] However, its deployment in the 2023 General Elections was characterized by staggering failure, earning it strident criticism.^[10]

Despite the poor outcome, INEC had the best of intentions for adopting the IreV portal in the 2023 General Elections. Quoting the former INEC Chairman, Professor Mahmood Yakubu, the cardinal reason for the IReV portal was ‘to make results from Polling Units readily available to the public as a means of increasing transparency and trust’.^[11] From the foregoing, it can be deduced that the intention of INEC via the IReV, is to foster accountability and transparency in the electoral process. Based on this, the next section examines whether the Electoral Act, 2026 lives up to these aims or undermines them.

THE DEBATE OF ELECTRONIC TRANSMISSION OF ELECTION RESULTS UNDER THE ELECTORAL ACT 2026

On Wednesday, 18th of February, 2026, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu signed the Electoral (Amendment) Bill, 2026, culminating in its enactment as the Electoral Act, 2026.^[12] The Act introduced several notable changes to Nigeria’s electoral landscape such as reducing the number of days for INEC to issue a Notice of Election from 360 to 300 days.^[13] It also cut down the timeline for the submission of duly nominated candidates by political parties to 120 days before the election, from 180 days.^[14] Other changes include abolishing Indirect primary elections and allowing voters to download their Permanent Voter Card (PVC) from INEC’s website.^[15]

One of the most notable changes under the new Act is captured in section 60(3) which provides that:

The Presiding Officer shall electronically transmit the results from each polling unit to IREV portal, and such transmission shall be done after the prescribed Form EC8A has been signed and stamped by the Presiding Officer and/or countersigned by the candidates or Polling agents where available at the Polling Unit: Provided that in all cases, the Form EC8A shall remain the primary source of collation and declaration of the result.^[16]

This provision is significant because it makes the transmission of election results to the IReV portal mandatory, thereby curing the lacuna in the old Act. The provision also gives IReV legal recognition making it no longer unknown to Nigeria’s jurisprudence as courts have consistently held.^[17] However, the provision also retains the physical Form EC8As as the ‘primary source of collation and declaration of the result’. This has sparked heated debates with many accusing the National Assembly of providing relief with one hand and taking it back with the other hand.

The controversy surrounding section 60(3) of the Electoral Act, 2026 stems not from the introduction of electronic transmission, but from subordinating electronically transmitted results to the physical Form EC8A. Although mandatory transmission appears progressive, the retention of the physical result sheet as primary has raised concerns about inconsistency and ambiguity. Supporters, however, view the proviso as legislative pragmatism, given Nigeria’s infrastructural challenges such as poor internet access, unstable power supply, and varying digital literacy, making Form EC8A a safeguard against system failure.

However, critics contend that the proviso undermines the very transparency that electronic transmission seeks to achieve. If electronically transmitted results are not accorded equal evidential weight, their utility becomes largely symbolic. This concern is heightened by Nigeria’s lived electoral experiences, where physical result sheets have historically been the most vulnerable point for manipulation during movement from polling units to collation centres.

By reaffirming the dominance of Form EC8A, section 60(3) arguably perpetuates the structural weaknesses that electronic transmission was designed to cure.

THE WAY FORWARD

To reconcile innovation with integrity, the following recommendations are proposed:

1. LEGISLATIVE CLARIFICATION: The National Assembly should amend section 60(3) to accord electronically transmitted results evidential parity with Form EC8A, at least for purposes of verification and dispute resolution.
2. REGULATORY FRAMEWORK BY INEC: INEC should issue binding regulations detailing how discrepancies between electronically transmitted results and physical forms are to be resolved at collation centres.
3. JUDICIAL GUIDANCE: Courts should adopt a purposive interpretation of section 60(3) that gives effect to the transparency objectives underpinning electronic transmission, rather than treating it as merely supplementary.
4. PUBLIC ACCOUNTABILITY: The electorate and civil society organisations must continue to utilise platforms like IReV as tools for election monitoring, thereby reinforcing their relevance beyond statutory text.

CONCLUSION

The Electoral Act, 2026 represents a significant, albeit cautious, step in Nigeria’s electoral reform journey. Section 60(3) embodies the tension between technological optimism and institutional realism. While it cures the legal invisibility of electronic transmission, it simultaneously constrains its transformative potential. Whether the provision ultimately strengthens or undermines electoral integrity will depend on legislative refinement, administrative competence, and judicial interpretation in the years leading up to, and beyond, the 2027 General Elections.

REFERENCE

1. Electoral Act 2026, s 60(3). ↑
2. Jonathan G. Taidi, ‘2026 Electoral Act as Determinant of Nigeria’s Future Electoral Democracy’ in This Day Live, ‘Electoral Act 2026: The Pros and Cons’ This Day Live (23 February 2026). https://www.thisdaylive.com/2026/02/24/electoral-act-2026-the-pros-and-cons/ accessed 25 February 2026. ↑
3. Ferdinard O. Orbih, ‘Electronic Transmission of Results: Much Ado About Nothing’ in This Day Live, ‘Electoral Act 2026: The Pros and Cons’ This Day Live (23 February 2026). https://www.thisdaylive.com/2026/02/24/electoral-act-2026-the-pros-and-cons/ accessed 25 February 2026; Jide Ojo, ‘Electoral Act 2026: Gains and Missed Opportunities’ in This Day Live, ‘Electoral Act 2026: The Pros and Cons’ This Day Live (23 February 2026). https://www.thisdaylive.com/2026/02/24/electoral-act-2026-the-pros-and-cons/ accessed 25 February 2026; Opeyemi Bamidele, ’12 Takeaways from the new Electoral Act’ Punch (25 February 2026). https://punchng.com/12-takeaways-from-the-new-electoral-act/ accessed 25 February 2026. ↑
4. INEC, Electronic Transmission of Election Results (2021). https://inecnigeria.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/ELECTRONIC-TRANSMISSION-OF-RESULT.pdf accessed 25 February 2026. ↑
5. Ibid, 9. ↑
6. Ibid, 12. ↑
7. Ibid, 13. ↑
8. Mahmood Yakubu, Improvements in Election Result Management in Nigeria: The Role of Law, Administration and Technology (keynote address delivered at the release of the Yiaga Africa Report on the Election Result Analysis Dashboard [ERAD], Transcorp Hilton Hotel, Abuja, 9 September 2022). https://www.inecnigeria.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/Improvements-in-Election-Results-Management-in-Nigeria-by-Prof-Mahmood-Yakubu-INEC-Chairman-.pdf accessed 25 February 2026. ↑
9. Ibid, 11. ↑
10. Akindeji Aromaye, ‘Nigeria’s Electoral Bill 2026: What Really Changed, and What Didn’t’ EIE (19 February 2026). https://eie.ng/nigerias-electoral-bill-2026/ accessed 25 February 2026. The author revealed that 36 hours after the polls closed, INEC had uploaded only 31.8% of the presidential results to the IReV portal. Matter-of-factly, the failure to upload Polling Unit results on the IReV portal was a ground in the election petitions that followed the 2023 General Elections. ↑
11. Yakubu (n8), 11. ↑
12. Premium Times, ‘UPDATED: Tinubu Signs Electoral Act Amendment Bill 2026 into Law, Commends Lawmakers for Preventing ‘Potential Hacking’ (Abuja, 18 February 2026). https://www.premiumtimesng.com/news/top-news/857650-updated-tinubu-signs-electoral-act-amendment-bill-2026-into-law-commends-lawmakers-for-preventing-potential-hacking.html accessed 25 February 2026. ↑
13. Festus Okoye, ‘Constitutional Timelines and Electoral Certainty’ in This Day Live, ‘Electoral Act 2026: The Pros and Cons’ This Day Live (23 February 2026). https://www.thisdaylive.com/2026/02/24/electoral-act-2026-the-pros-and-cons/ accessed 25 February 2026. ↑
14. Ibid. ↑
15. Aromaye (n10). ↑
16. Electoral Act 2026, s. 60(3). ↑
17. For instance, in Oyetola & Anor v INEC & Ors (2023) LPELR-60392(SC), the Supreme Court held that he Electoral Act 2022, while providing for electronic transmission, does not make it the sole or mandatory means of collation. The manual collation of results, evidenced by the signed and stamped forms (Form EC8A, EC8B, etc.), remains the legally recognised method. ↑