The House of Representatives has proposed a single day for the conduct of the five elections in 2027.

If the proposal is upheld, the reviewed Electoral Act would empower the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to simultaneously conduct the presidential, senatorial, House of Representatives, governorship and House of Assembly polls in one day.

Other amendments being proposed by the Lower Chamber of the National Assembly include the payment of N50 million by political associations seeking registration as parties, restriction of presidential election expenses to N10 billion, conduct of elections 120 days before the expiration of the incumbent’s term and determination of election petitions within 90 days after the exercise.

The House also took steps to end series of by-elections arising from resignation and death of elected members of the state and National Assembly, proposing that parties who sponsored the lawmaker who died or resigned be made to produce his replacement.

The Electoral Bill 2025 titled:  “A bill for an Act to repeal the Electoral Act No 13, 2022 and to enact the Electoral Act 2025, to regulate the conduct of Federal, State and Area Councils in the Federal Capital Territory elections and for related matters” had passed through the Second Reading in the House

The bill sponsored by the Chairman of the House Committee on Electoral Matters, Bayo Balogun (APC, Lagos), also seeks the payment of an administrative fee of N50 by political associations before the application is processed.

Although the 202acAct provides that such associations would be required to pay an administrative fee, the amount is left it to the discretion of INEC.

Also, the proposed amendment seeks to restrict governorship election expenses to N3 billion, representing an increase from N1 billion in the 2022 Electoral Act.

Senatatorial, House of Representatives, Houses of Assembly, Chairmanship and Councillorship election expenses are restricted to N500 million, N250 million, N30 million (for State Assembly and Chairman) and N10 million respectively.

According to the proposed review, “no individual or other entity shall donate to a candidate more than N500 million.”

Clause 27 of the proposed law states that elections at all levels shall be held not earlier than 210 days and not later than 30 days before the expiration of the tenure of office of the occupants of the office, adding that “where a vacancy occurs in any of the Houses mentioned in sub-section (1) more than 90 days before the date of general elections, an election shall be held to fill such vacancy not later than 30 days after the occurrence of the vacancy.”

The 2022 Electoral Act makes it mandatory for INEC to declare a notice of election 360 days before the conduct of the election.

However, the proposed amendment states that “without prejudice to subsections 1 and 3 above, apart from off- circle elections, all the elections shall hold the same day”.

It adds: “Every political party shall, not later than 210 days before the date appointed for a general election under this Act, submit to the Commission, in the prescribed Forms, the list of the candidates the party proposes to sponsor at the elections, who must have emerged from valid primaries conducted by the political party.

“The list or information submitted by each candidate shall be accompanied by an affidavit sworn to by the candidate at the Federal High Court, High Court of a State, or Federal Capital Territory, indicating that he or she has fulfilled all the constitutional requirements for election into that office.

“The Commission shall, within 21 days of the receipt of the personal particulars of the candidate, publish same in the constituency where the candidate intends to contest the election.

“A person may apply to the Commission for a copy of nomination form, affidavit and any other document submitted by a candidate at an election and the Commission shall, upon payment of a prescribed fee, issue such person with a certified true copy of the document within 14 days.

“A aspirant who participated in the primaries of his political party who has reasonable grounds to believe that any information given by the political party’s candidate in the affidavit or any document submitted by that candidate in relation to his constitutional requirements to contest the election is false, may file a suit at the Federal High Court in the jurisdiction where the course of action arose against that candidate seeking a Submission of list of candidates and their affidavits by political parties declaration that the information contained in the affidavit is false.

“Where the Court determines that any of the information contained in the affidavit is false only as it relates to constitutional requirements of eligibility, the Court shall issue an order disqualifying the candidate and the sponsoring political party”.

The law makes it an offence for any one to present himself for election without meeting the stipulated qualification, adding that an impostor risks a fine of N5 million and the party presenting an unqualified candidate will be liable on conviction to a fine of not less than N10 million.

It also state that political parties shall not be allowed to change or substitute its candidate whose name has been submitted under Section 28 of this Act, except in the case of death or withdrawal by the candidate in accordance with Section 30, provided that in the case of such withdrawal or death of a candidate, the political party affected shall, within 14 days of the occurrence of the event, hold another primary election to produce and submit a new candidate to the Commission for the election concerned.

Clause 40 of the law states that “where an elected member of a Legislative house at any level of government resigns, dies or is otherwise unable to continue in office before the expiration of the tenure for which the member was elected, the political party under whose platform the member was elected shall have the mandate to nominate a replacement from within the party in accordance with the procedure for nomination of candidates in section 84 (2).”

It also states that the nomination process for such replacement “shall be made within sixty (60) days after the seat is declared vacant by the presiding officer due to resignation, death, or incapacity of the member” and “the National Chairman of the political party shall submit the name of the nominated replacement to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) for ratification and issuance of a Certificate of return”.

The commission is however, expected to issue a certificate of return to the candidate so nominated after ratification and the nominated member shall be deemed to have been duly elected and shall be sworn-in accordingly, without the need for a by-election.

The proposed amendment also set aside a date for security personnel; officials of the Commission; accredited domestic observers; accredited journalists; and ad-hoc staff of the Commission to cast their votes under a procedure to be determined by the Commission, adding that “a person whose name is on the early voter’s list shall not vote on the official day scheduled for the respective election”.

The proposed law is silent on the use of Permanent Voters cards for accreditation during elections.