Yiaga Africa Flags Inconsistencies in Ekiti Governorship Election Materials
In its preliminary report after polls opened for the Ekiti governorship election, Yiaga Africa said it found inconsistencies among the ballot papers, result sheets, and INEC’s published list of...
In its preliminary report after polls opened for the Ekiti governorship election, Yiaga Africa said it found inconsistencies among the ballot papers, result sheets, and INEC’s published list of candidates.
In the report titled ‘Yiaga Africa Preliminary Statement on Ballot Paper and Result Sheet Inconsistencies in the Ekiti 2026 Governorship Election’, the civil society organisation and a part of the European Union Election Observation Hub noted, ‘Specifically, the Form EC8A polling unit result sheets provide spaces for 15 political parties; the ballot papers in circulation carry 19 parties; while INEC’s final list of candidates, as updated and available on the INEC website as of 18th June 2026, reflects 14 parties that fielded candidates.’
Yiaga Africa noted that it “recognises the context. After INEC published its initial list of 12 candidates in January 2026, subsequent court rulings (notably on the PDP’s candidacy) and late administrative changes altered party and candidate participation. Some of those changes do not appear to have been fully and consistently reflected across all election materials. Also, the public may not have fully received information about these changes.
“These inconsistencies might create confusion during voting and collation. Where result sheets include parties that are not on the ballot, presiding officers may record zero votes for parties that voters did not see. Conversely, where voters cast ballots for parties not reflected on the result sheet, such actions could create uncertainty in recording, reconciliation, and collation
“Yiaga Africa, therefore, calls on INEC to: 1. Publicly clarify, without delay, the final list of parties and candidates, and explain any differences between the ballot papers, result sheets, and earlier announcements. 2. Issue clear written instructions to presiding and collation officers on completing result sheets consistently with the law and relevant court judgments, including how to treat parties on the result sheet but not on the ballot and vice versa.”
The statement was signed by Dr. Aisha Abdullahi, Chair, 2026 Ekiti Election Observation Mission and Mr Samson Itodo, Executive Director.
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