The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has fixed the first week of February 2024 for the conduct of rerun elections in 34 Federal and State Constituencies in some parts of the country.
The positions became vacant following the nullifications of the elections by the Election Petition Appeal Tribunals, which ordered INEC to conduct re-run elections to fill the vacancies.
INEC Chairman, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, at a meeting with Chairmen and leaders of political parties on Monday, explained that the 34 constituencies are made up of one senatorial district, 11 federal and 22 state constituencies.
According to Prof. Yakubu, the 34 constituencies represent 2.8 per cent of the 1,191 petitions filed by litigants challenging the conduct of the 2023 general elections.
He added that “out of the 34 re-run elections, it is only in three cases that the commission was ordered to conduct elections in the entire constituencies.
“In the other 31 constituencies, elections are to be held in a few polling units.”
He promised that the commission will present a comprehensive analysis of the petitions, including cases where the INEC was ordered to issue certificates of return to other candidates and the reasons for the decisions by the courts, at the end of all the litigations, including the governorship elections pending on appeal at the Supreme Court.
This, he said, would help to improve the conduct of future elections.
The INEC Chairman also disclosed that the commission intends to combine the conduct of bye-elections to fill vacancies arising from the death or resignation of members of the National and state Houses of Assembly, with the re-run polls.
He explained that while re-run elections involve only the parties and candidates that participated in the general election “unless a party wishes to replace a deceased candidate… bye-elections are fresh elections.
“Consequently, political parties must conduct fresh primaries within the limited period of time provided by law.”
Prof. Yakubu told party leaders that the purpose of the meeting is to review preparations for the elections “and announce a definite date, including the detailed timetable and schedule of activities for the elections.”
He further promised that the “full delimitation details, including locations, number of polling units, registered voters and permanent voters’ cards (PVCs) collected in each constituency” would be uploaded to the INEC website.
