The Independent National Electoral Commission has announced that 1,565,873 Nigerians have successfully completed their voter registration in the first seven weeks of Phase III of the Continuous Voter Registration exercise.

Data released by the commission in Abuja shows that the figure includes 620,933 citizens who completed their pre-registration online and 944,940 who registered physically at designated centres nationwide.

INEC stressed that the numbers are still provisional. The final register will only be determined after a nationwide display of the data for public scrutiny, during which citizens can make claims and raise objections. Thereafter, the Automated Biometric Identification System will be deployed to remove multiple and ineligible entries.

A state-by-state breakdown indicates that Kano leads the current registration table with 118,207 new registrants, representing 7.55 per cent of the national total. Lagos follows with 78,360 registrants, or five per cent, while Delta ranks third with 76,395 registrants, accounting for 4.88 per cent.

INEC also confirmed that voter registration has been temporarily suspended in Ekiti and Osun states. The suspension is in line with Section 9(6) of the Electoral Act 2022, which bars registration in a state shortly before its governorship election. Ekiti has just concluded its poll, while Osun is preparing for its own.

The gender breakdown of the new registrants shows that women are slightly ahead. Female registrants number 821,276, or 52.45 per cent of the total, while male registrants stand at 744,597, representing 47.55 per cent.

Youths continue to dominate the process. Nigerians aged 18 to 34 account for 1,082,985 registrants, or 69.16 per cent. Those aged 35 to 49 follow with 331,376 registrants, representing 21.16 per cent, while older age groups make up the remainder.

By occupation, students form the single largest bloc of new voters, with 384,093 registrants, or 24.53 per cent. They are followed by business people, who account for 333,539 registrants, or 21.30 per cent, and farmers and fishers, with 273,627 registrants, representing 17.47 per cent.

The statistics further show that 18,919 Persons with Disabilities have registered during the period, reflecting ongoing efforts to make the electoral process more inclusive.

INEC urged all eligible Nigerians who have not yet registered to take advantage of the ongoing exercise, either through its online portal or by visiting approved registration centres across the country, to secure their right to vote in future elections.