The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has announced that the nationwide collection of newly issued Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs) will begin on October 9, 2026, ahead of the 2027 general elections.
INEC Chairman, Professor Joash Amupitan, disclosed this on Monday in Kaduna during the commission’s North-West Zonal Interactive Meeting with staff and readiness assessment for the 2027 elections.
The commission said the recent Continuous Voter Registration exercise recorded 10,772,421 new registrations, subject to biometric verification.
Supervising National Commissioner for Kaduna, Mohammed Kudu Haruna, said the October 9 collection date was communicated by the INEC chairman during his visit to the Emir of Zazzau.
He urged traditional rulers to encourage eligible Nigerians to collect their PVCs and participate in the electoral process.
Amupitan also called for the elimination of bottlenecks in PVC distribution at the local government level to prevent eligible voters from being disenfranchised.
He said INEC was strengthening its technological systems for voter verification and result transmission while adopting a “Zero-Failure” approach to election logistics, including early deployment of materials, security coordination and training of ad-hoc personnel.
The announcement comes as INEC intensifies preparations for the 2027 general elections through nationwide readiness assessments across its six geopolitical zones.
