Toba Owojaiye Reporting
Abuja, Nigeria
In what promises to be a critical litmus test for Nigeria’s electoral integrity and democratic resilience, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has officially scheduled Saturday, August 16, 2025, for a wave of bye-elections and court-ordered re-runs across 13 states of the federation.
Truth Live News gathered that the off cycle elections, which cut across two senatorial districts, five federal constituencies, and nine state constituencies, will mobilize over 30,000 election officials and engage 3.5 million registered voters at 6,987 polling units nationwide.
INEC listed the affected areas as follows:
Senatorial seats: Anambra South and Edo Central
House of Reps seats: Ovia South-West/Ovia North-East (Edo), Babura/Garki (Jigawa), Chikun/Kajuru (Kaduna), Ikenne/Shagamu/Remo North (Ogun), and Ibadan North (Oyo)
State Assemblies: Ganye (Adamawa), Onitsha North I (Anambra), Dekina/Okura (Kogi), Zaria Kewaye and Basawa (Kaduna), Bagwai/Shanono (Kano), Mariga (Niger), Karim Lamido I (Taraba), and Kauran Namoda South (Zamfara)
Also included are court-mandated re-runs for Enugu South I and Ghari/Tsanyawa in Enugu and Kano respectively, both disrupted by previous electoral violence.
INEC clarified that Khana II constituency in Rivers State will not feature in the August exercise due to a declared state of emergency in the area. Similarly, Talata Mafara South in Zamfara State is on hold pending legal clarification over the status of the seat.
INEC Chairman, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, while addressing stakeholders in Abuja, emphasized the gravity of the elections and the need for compliance with the timeline.
“This Commission is committed to ensuring credible, inclusive, and violence-free elections,” Yakubu stated. “We expect political parties to play by the rules, and we will not hesitate to sanction defaulters as provided under the Electoral Act.”
He then laid out a strict electoral timetable:
Party Primaries: July 17–21
Online Nomination Submission: July 22–26
Campaign Window: August 2–14
Voting Day: Saturday, August 16INEC also announced the recommencement of the Continuous Voter Registration (CVR) exercise—a critical first step toward the 2027 general elections.
Online pre-registration: begins August 18
Physical registration: resumes August 25 at state and LGA offices
Special Anambra Window: July 8–17 across all 326 wards in the state
This rollout, according to Yakubu, will focus not just on first-time voters, but also on those seeking to transfer, correct, or update their voter records.
But these bye-elections are not mere formalities. They are pivotal moments that will determine:
Whether new faces will shake up entrenched political structures,
If opposition parties can claw back lost ground, and
Whether INEC can restore public confidence in the electoral system after a season marred by litigation, low voter turnout, and post-election violence.
In states like Kaduna, Anambra, Edo, and Ogun, the stakes are even higher—given their history of political volatility and rising citizen dissatisfaction.
August 16 won’t just be another Saturday. It will be a defining referendum on governance, legitimacy, and the people’s right to choose.
The upcoming elections may well determine which direction the pendulum swings.