As promised, President Muhammadu Buhari on Friday signed the Electoral Act Amendment Bill into law.
The new legal framework for Nigeria’s elections contains key provisions aimed at improving the quality and credibility of elections and addresses certain deficiencies in the previous Electoral Act.
Here are ten key provisions of the new Electoral Law:
1. Section 29 (1) stipulates that parties must conduct primaries and submit their list of candidates at least 180 days before the general elections.
2. Section 65 states that INEC can review results declared under duress.
3. Section 3 (3) states that funds for general elections must be released at least one year before the election.
4. Section 51 says that the total number of accredited voters will become a factor in determining over-voting at election tribunals.
5. Section 54 (2) makes provisions for people with disabilities and special needs.
6. Section 47 gives legislative backing for smart card readers and any other voter accreditation technology that the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) deploy.
7. Section 34 gives political parties power to conduct a primary election to replace a candidate who died during an election.
8. Section 50 gives INEC the legal backing for electronic transmission of election results.
9. Section 94 allows for early commencement of the campaign season. By this provision, the campaign season will now start 150 days to the Election Day and end 24 hours before the election.
10. Section 84 stipulates that anyone holding a political office – ministers, commissioners, special advisers and others – must relinquish the position before they can be eligible to participate in the electoral process either as a candidate or as a delegate.
Meanwhile, an extraordinary meeting of the Independent National Electoral Commission is billed for Saturday, February 26, 2022 after which a statement would be issued.
