2027 Elections: ADC Defies INEC Warning, Vows to Publish Polling-Unit Results

BY TAIBAT UMMI YAKUBU

The African Democratic Congress (ADC) has vowed to collate and publish its polling-unit results during the 2027 general elections, insisting that the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) cannot prevent citizens from documenting and sharing election information.

The party said its agents would record results at polling units, while its structures would gather and verify the figures before making them available to the public, despite INEC’s warning against the circulation of privately collated election results.

The ADC made its position known in a statement issued by its National Publicity Secretary, Bolaji Abdullahi, in response to comments by INEC Chairman, Professor Joash Amupitan, cautioning against the sharing of results independently compiled by political parties and other groups.

Abdullahi said the party recognised INEC’s statutory authority to announce official election results and declare winners but maintained that the commission’s responsibility did not remove citizens’ constitutional rights to gather and communicate election information.

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The party argued that its planned exercise would involve documenting the electoral process and sharing figures whose sources and status would be clearly identified.

“We are aware of our rights to freedom of expression under the Constitution. We are also aware of the limitations associated with those rights,” the statement said, adding that the party did not believe those limitations automatically prohibited it from collating and sharing results.

The ADC further declared that its polling agents would document results, its party structures would compile the figures, and verified information would be communicated to the public with clear indications of its origin and whether it represented official results.

The development highlights the growing debate over transparency, independent monitoring and the communication of election results ahead of the 2027 general elections.

While INEC remains responsible for officially declaring election outcomes, the ADC insists that political parties and citizens should be able to document results and share independently verified information, provided they clearly distinguish such figures from the commission’s official declarations.