As the Senate and House of Representatives head into a crucial conference committee on electronic transmission of election results, sharp divisions over mandatory real-time uploads versus discretionary manual collation threaten to redefine Nigeria’s electoral transparency framework. Sunday Aborisade in this piece, examines the stakes, the fault lines, and the compromise required to protect democratic credibility.
If Nigeria’s electoral law leaves room for the widespread manual collation of results across 176,974 polling units on the grounds of “network challenges”, the consequences may be far-reaching: delayed declarations, disputes over figures, accusations of manipulation, and renewed post-election tensions. In a nation where electoral credibility is closely tied to political stability, even the perception of opacity can trigger uncertainty.
It is against this combustible backdrop that the Senate and the House of Representatives are heading into a decisive conference committee on the Electoral Act (Amendment) Bill, 2026. At issue is Clause 60(3), the provision governing the transmission of election results.
