President Bola Tinubu has signed the Electoral Act, 2022 (Repeal and Re-Enactment) Bill 2026 into law, following its passage by the National Assembly after months of deliberations marked by intense debates.
The signing comes amid heightened controversy over provisions relating to the transmission of election results ahead of the 2027 general elections. Lawmakers and prominent Nigerians have been sharply divided over whether electronic transmission of results should be mandatory or subject to manual alternatives in cases of technical failure.
The Senate on Tuesday passed the bill after a rowdy plenary session that saw heated exchanges over Clause 60 of the proposed legislation. The controversy was triggered when Senator Enyinnaya Abaribe (ADC/Abia South) demanded a division on the clause, particularly objecting to a proviso that allows manual transmission of results if electronic transmission fails.
Senate President Godswill Akpabio initially stated that he believed the demand for division had been withdrawn, a claim immediately challenged by several opposition senators. Citing Order 52(6), Deputy Senate President Barau Jibrin argued that it would be procedurally out of order to revisit a matter already ruled upon by the presiding officer.
The argument sparked further uproar in the chamber, including a brief face-off between Senator Abaribe and Senator Sunday Karimi. Senate Leader Opeyemi Bamidele intervened, reminding lawmakers that he had sponsored a motion for rescission, effectively nullifying previous decisions on the clause and making Abaribe’s demand valid.
Akpabio suggested that Abaribe’s insistence on a division was an attempt to publicly register his opposition to the provision. After sustaining the point of order, the Senate President directed that a formal division be conducted.
Rising under Order 72(1), Abaribe called for a division on Clause 60(3), specifically seeking the removal of the proviso permitting manual transmission of results in the event of network failure. During the vote, 15 opposition senators stood against the caveat, while 55 senators voted in support of retaining it. Akpabio subsequently announced that the proviso had been upheld.
Earlier, proceedings had briefly stalled during clause-by-clause consideration of the bill after a motion to rescind earlier amendments was seconded, allowing the Senate to dissolve into the Committee of the Whole for detailed reconsideration. Tension rose when Abaribe raised a point of order at Clause 60, prompting consultations and eventually leading to a closed-door session.
In the House of Representatives, a similar disagreement unfolded. Lawmakers clashed over a motion to rescind the passage of the Electoral Act Amendment Bill, which had earlier provided for compulsory real-time electronic transmission of election results.
Chairman of the House Committee on Rules and Business, Francis Waive, moved the motion for rescission in alignment with the Senate’s position. However, when Speaker Tajudeen Abbas put the motion to a voice vote, the “nays” appeared louder than the “ayes.” Despite this, the Speaker ruled in favour of the “ayes,” sparking protests from opposition lawmakers and leading to an executive session.
It would be recalled that when the House passed the Electoral Act in December 2025, it adopted compulsory real-time transmission of election results to the IReV portal. The new law, as signed by the President, retains the provision allowing manual transmission in cases where electronic transmission fails, setting the stage for renewed political debate ahead of the 2027 polls.
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