Senate Amends Electoral Act, Approves Electronic Transmission with Safeguards

The Nigerian Senate on Tuesday amended the Electoral Act to allow electronic transmission of election results, while retaining manual submission as a fallback for technical failures.

The move reverses the upper chamber’s earlier rejection of compulsory electronic transmission from polling units to INEC’s Result Viewing Portal (IREV).

Senator Tahir Monguno, who sponsored the motion, said electronic transmission would now serve as the primary method, with Form EC8A remaining the official document where network issues occur.

The debate triggered tense exchanges on the floor, with Senator Enyinnaya Abaribe initially calling for individual voting before withdrawing.

The votes were ultimately adopted, and a 12-member conference committee was appointed to harmonise the Senate and House versions of the bill. Senator Simon Lalong will chair the panel.

Senate President Godswill Akpabio urged urgency, stating the bill would be transmitted to President Bola Tinubu for assent within February, signalling its imminent enactment.

The amendment follows nationwide protests, and civil society calls for mandatory real-time transmission, aimed at improving electoral transparency and credibility.