…Cites Early Funding as Key to Seamless Elections
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has proposed a total budget of N873.78 billion for the conduct of the 2027 general elections, signalling the formal commencement of preparations for the nationwide exercise.
INEC Chairman, Prof. Joash Amupitan, presented the proposal on Thursday before the Senate and House of Representatives Joint Committee on Electoral Matters at the National Assembly. The budget defence session was chaired by Senator Simon Bako Lalong and his House counterpart, Hon. Adebayo Balogun.
Amupitan said preparations for the 2027 polls had already begun in compliance with statutory provisions requiring that funds for general elections be appropriated at least 360 days before the date fixed for the exercise.
He stressed that early appropriation was critical to effective planning and smooth implementation of the electoral process.
A breakdown of the proposal shows that election operations will take the largest share of the budget, with N375.75 billion allocated to activities directly linked to the conduct of the polls.
Administrative costs are projected at N92.31 billion, while N209.21 billion has been earmarked for election technology — reflecting the Commission’s continued reliance on technology-driven systems.
INEC also proposed N154.90 billion for capital expenditure related to the elections.
Altogether, the four core components amount to N832.17 billion. Amupitan disclosed that an additional N41.61 billion has been set aside for miscellaneous expenses, bringing the total proposed budget for the 2027 general elections to N873.78 billion.
He explained that the capital component of the proposal is significantly higher than in previous election budgets, noting that several capital items not adequately captured in earlier appropriations have now been consolidated into the 2027 election framework.
Providing further clarity, the INEC chairman outlined the internal coding structure for the proposed expenditure: election operations fall under codes 230101 to 230601; administrative costs under 230703 to 230812; technology costs under 230707 to 230811; capital costs under 230198 to 320201; while miscellaneous expenses are contained in code 230725.
According to him, comprehensive details of the proposed spending — including specific activities and cost items — are contained in pages one to five of the document submitted to the National Assembly.
The proposal is expected to undergo legislative scrutiny in the coming weeks as lawmakers deliberate on funding priorities ahead of the 2027 general elections.
