INEC Has No Preferred Candidate for 2027 Elections, Says Chairman

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) of Nigeria has no favored candidate in the upcoming 2027 general elections, emphasizing its sole allegiance to the constitution and the Nigerian people's choices. INEC Chairman Prof. Joash Amupitan, represented by Director of Legal Services Mr. Al-Hassan Umar (SAN), stressed this commitment at a seminar focused on the armed forces' role in ensuring free, fair, and credible elections.

Amupitan called on military personnel assigned to election security duties to maintain absolute political neutrality. He stated that the armed forces serve the Nigerian state and its constitution, not any specific political party, candidate, or individual. Interactions between military personnel and citizens during elections must reflect courtesy, discipline, restraint, and professionalism, he added.

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The Commission has no candidate in any election. Our allegiance is solely to the Constitution, the Electoral Act and the freely expressed will of the Nigerian people.

The INEC chairman outlined five critical priorities for achieving credible elections: sustained collaboration among election security stakeholders, intensified election-specific training and simulation exercises, intelligence-driven security operations, strict adherence to the Code of Conduct and Rules of Engagement for security personnel, and unwavering professionalism, transparency, and accountability.

He further noted that election security should be proactive, leveraging intelligence gathering, inter-agency coordination, strategic communication, and timely deployment of security resources. Amupitan acknowledged the evolving security challenges in Nigeria, including insurgency, banditry, and political violence, which necessitate coordinated responses from security agencies. INEC will continue its close work with security agencies through the Inter-Agency Consultative Committee on Election Security (ICCES) to assess risks and coordinate operational plans. The armed forces' role in election logistics, particularly in providing transport to remote areas, was also recognized.

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The Armed Forces serve the Nigerian State and the Constitution, not any political party, candidate or individual. Every interaction between military personnel and citizens during elections should reflect courtesy, discipline, restraint and professionalism.