The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has identified Lagos, Kano and Kaduna as the three states with the highest number of registered voters as Nigeria heads towards the 2027 general elections.
INEC Chairman Prof. Joash Amupitan made the disclosure on Tuesday at a stakeholders meeting and press conference in Abuja, where he gave a comprehensive update on the national voters' register.
Top 10 states by registered voters
Lagos leads the country with 7,488,633 registered voters, followed by Kano with 6,570,276 and Kaduna with 4,662,640. Amupitan said the total figure on the register now stands at 103,428,715, following the completion of a three-phase Continuous Voter Registration (CVR) exercise and a biometric clean-up.
Amupitan read out the full top 10 ranking during the briefing:
- Lagos State — 7,488,633
- Kano State — 6,570,276
- Kaduna State — 4,662,640
- Katsina State — 3,876,051
- Rivers State — 3,736,434
- Oyo State — 3,588,111
- Delta State — 3,525,988
- Benue State — 3,057,225
- Ogun State — 3,037,981
- Bauchi State — 3,012,547
At the other end, Ekiti had the fewest registered voters in the country at 1,055,708. Bayelsa was second from the bottom with 1,200,691, while the Federal Capital Territory recorded 1,732,043. Ondo and Gombe followed with 1,733,641 and 1,768,560 respectively.
The three-phase CVR exercise recorded 10,772,421 new registrations before the final biometric clean-up was carried out.
Demographic breakdown of the register
On the gender split, Amupitan said male voters account for 53,528,218, or 51.75 per cent of the register, while female voters number 49,900,497, making up 48.25 per cent.
Voters between 35 and 49 years old form the largest age group at 43,265,946, representing 41.83 per cent. Those aged 18 to 34 number 29,777,576 (28.79 per cent), while voters between 50 and 69 account for 22,982,900 (22.22 per cent). Voters aged 70 and above are the smallest group at 7,402,291, or 7.16 per cent.
INEC also recorded 232,658 persons with disabilities across 10 categories. The largest sub-group was classified as "others" with 101,183 voters (43.49 per cent), followed by persons with albinism at 44,023 (18.92 per cent) and physical impairment at 27,141 (11.67 per cent).
What comes next
Amupitan announced that, in line with Section 19(1) of the Electoral Act 2026, the voters' register will be available for public scrutiny from October 9 to 15, 2026, giving Nigerians the opportunity to raise any objections or claims before the elections.
"The register of voters will be displayed for public scrutiny from the 9th to 15th of October 2026, not later than 90 days before the general election," he said.
Nationwide collection of newly issued Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs) is also set to begin on October 9, 2026.
