Nigeria’s INEC sees vote count delays in closely watched presidential election
Nigerians headed to the polls on Saturday to vote in record numbers in the country’s presidential elections, with no clear favorite among the top candidates vying to replace outgoing President Muhammadu Buhari.
The earliest results began to come in but it was far too soon to project a winner in an unusually tight presidential race. The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) said Sunday that it was having difficulties with the results viewing portal, but the technical issues were not linked to any manipulation or sabotage.
Frontrunner Bola Ahmed Tinubu, above, the All Progressives Congress (APC) party candidate supported by Buhari, was expected to see a strong challenge from opposition candidates including the Labour Party’s Peter Obi and Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso of the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP).
Atiku Abubakar of the popular Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has received the endorsement of five of Nigeria’s 18 political parties in what is now his sixth attempt for the Nigerian presidency.
INEC said it was prepared to deliver safe and credible election results for some 93.4 million registered voters, even in Borno State and other parts of the country that face ongoing security challenges. While there were no immediate reports of widespread violence, police in Lagos State did confirm incidents of electoral violence in which arrests were made, according to local media accounts.
Candidates all met with INEC chief Mahmood Yakubu earlier this week to publicly sign a peace agreement meant to discourage violence among their supporters. Some candidates urged INEC to be transparent and release results quickly, but no data is expected until Monday.
Many voters experienced long delays at their polling places, with some unconfirmed local reports of voting irregularities.
Image: President Muhammadu Buhari/APC file
Laureen Fagan
Laureen is the editor of Africa Times
Laureen is a freelance journalist creating high-quality, informed content on international affairs, politics and technology. She has worked both in and out of newsrooms since 2000. She is a former paramedic with significant experience in community resilience and nonprofit community development initiatives, and maintains "a passion for action" on sustainability and climate change. She also is trained in conflict resolution and diversity, and has special interests in science and medical reporting, and culture and religion issues. Laureen received her MSJ from Northwestern University's Medill School of Journalism in the United States, and completed additional graduate study in theology at University of Notre Dame. Follow Laureen on Mastodon at @laureen@m.ai6yr.org
