…Abolishes Delegate Primaries
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has signed into law a far-reaching amendment to Nigeria’s Electoral Act, formally abolishing the delegate system in party primaries and approving only direct and consensus modes for the nomination of candidates ahead of the 2027 general elections.
With the new law, political parties can no longer conduct indirect primaries where selected delegates determine flag bearers. Instead, the Act recognises only two options: direct primaries — which allow all registered party members to vote in selecting candidates — and consensus, where aspirants voluntarily step down to produce a single agreed candidate.
The reform effectively institutionalises the principle of “one member, one vote” in party primaries and is widely viewed as a decisive move to curb vote-buying and financial inducement that often characterised delegate-based contests.
The signing of the amendment comes against the backdrop of public debate that followed the approval of both electronic transmission of results and manual collation methods in the revised law. While the Act endorses real-time electronic upload of results to the Independent National Electoral Commission’s (INEC) Result Viewing Portal (IREV), it also provides for the use of Form EC8A as a fallback where network failures prevent electronic transmission.
The dual provision has sparked mixed reactions among stakeholders, with supporters describing electronic transmission as a step toward greater transparency, while critics caution that retaining manual collation may leave room for disputes.
Beyond party primaries and result transmission, the amended law introduces additional changes to Nigeria’s electoral process.
The requirements for voter registration have been streamlined to three documents: a birth certificate, a Nigerian passport and a National Identification Number (NIN). The national identity card and driver’s licence have been removed from the list of acceptable identification documents.
In a move aimed at improving voter access, the law also introduces a downloadable voter card, enabling eligible voters to obtain their cards directly from INEC’s website, thereby reducing congestion at commission offices.
The amendment further revises key timelines. Election funds must now be released to INEC at least six months before general elections, instead of 12 months as previously stipulated. Political parties are required to submit their list of candidates not later than 120 days before election day, replacing the former 180-day deadline. INEC, in turn, is mandated to publish the final list of candidates 60 days before elections, instead of the previous 150 days.
With the elimination of indirect primaries and the adoption of direct and consensus modes, the new Electoral Act signals a significant restructuring of Nigeria’s internal party democracy as political actors begin preparations for the 2027 polls.
COURTESY: politicsdigest.ng
