2027: INEC considers full systems audit, mock presidential election

The Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, has moved to consider conducting a comprehensive audit of all its electoral technology systems, alongside a mock presidential election.

This is as part of measures to boost preparations for the 2027 general election.

The Chairman of the Commission, Professor Joash Amupitan, made this disclosure, on Thursday, when received the British High Commissioner to Nigeria, Richard Montgomery, on a courtesy visit to the Commission’s headquarters in Abuja.

According to the INEC Chairman, the proposals, which were under consideration, were informed by concerns arising from the 2023 general election, especially regarding the reliability of election technology.

He said the Commission under his watch was looking at the possibility of auditing all its systems ahead of the 2027 election, as well as conducting a mock presidential election, to test the readiness of its processes and technology before the actual polls.

The INEC boss explained that the proposed exercises were not originally captured in the Commission’s budget, stressing that the electoral body would explore ways to actualise them if required, given their potential value in strengthening the credibility of the general election.

Amupitan linked the proposals to the Commission’s broader efforts at technological reliability as well as an ongoing review of the Commission’s cyber-security architecture covering system redundancy, penetration testing and disaster recovery mechanisms.

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He further pointed out that public confidence in the electoral process depended significantly on the reliability of the Commission’s technology and processes, adding that INEC remained committed to addressing any gaps identified from previous elections ahead of 2027.

He listed election technology and cyber-security as one of the key areas of continued collaboration between INEC and the United Kingdom, noting that the Commission valued the technical partnership it had enjoyed with the UK and other international partners, including the International Foundation for Electoral Systems, IFES, in strengthening its electoral processes.

“The Commission is committed to delivering elections that are credible, transparent and reflective of the will of Nigerians.

“Electoral credibility remained a shared responsibility requiring the cooperation of political parties, security agencies, civil society, development partners and citizens,” he said.