CVR: Osun, Lagos leads 1.3m voter pre-registration as S’East records lowest

Isaac Samuel

The South West has recorded the highest figures in the first week of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) online voter pre-registration exercise, accounting for more than 61 per cent of the 1,379,342 applications received between August 18 and 24, 2025.

This was revealed as the commission commenced the physical registration stage on Monday, August 25, 2025.

According to figures released by the commission on Monday, Osun State recorded the highest number of pre-registrations with 393,269, followed by Lagos (222,205) and Ogun (132,823).

Oyo recorded 66,951, while Ekiti registered 29,685 and Ondo had 3,426. Collectively, the South West accounted for 848,359 pre-registrations.

The South South came a distant second with 169,377 applications, while the South East recorded 64,696, the lowest among the six geo-political zones.

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The document revealed that South East’s tally was heavily skewed by Anambra’s 62,698 registrations, while other states in the region; Abia (772), Ebonyi (261), Enugu (484) and Imo (481) recorded extremely low numbers.

These figures are among the lowest nationwide, in contrast with the massive turnout in Osun, Lagos, and Ogun.

In the North, the North Central zone, including the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), led with 243,768 pre-registrations, driven largely by the FCT’s 107,682 and Kogi’s 58,546.

The North West recorded 145,490, while the North East emerged as the least-performing zone in the region with 77,652 pre-registrations, representing just 5.6 per cent of the national total.

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The data indicated that southern Nigeria accounted for 66.2 per cent (912,432) of the registrations, while the North recorded 33.8 per cent (466,910).

The demographic breakdown shows that youths aged 18–34 years made up the majority with 62.37 per cent (860,286) of pre-registrants.

Middle-aged voters (35–49 years) followed with 24.76 per cent, while elderly (50–69 years) accounted for 11.41 per cent, and those aged 70 and above represented only 1.46 per cent.

Gender distribution revealed that women slightly outnumbered men at 52.04 per cent (717,856) compared to 47.96 per cent (661,486).

Students were the single largest occupational group with 27.15 per cent (374,534), followed by business persons at 24.82 per cent (342,363) and traders at 11.68 per cent (161,137).

ALSO READ ADC woos Jonathan as Mark, Atiku insist on primaries Isaac Samuel The race to the 2027 presidency took a dramatic turn this week as the African Democratic Congress (ADC) intensified efforts to lure former President Goodluck Jonathan into its fold. Jonathan, it was gathered is also taking decisive moves to reset opposition strategy and mount a formidable challenge against President Bola Tinubu. The former President held a closed-door meeting held in Abuja on Thursday with ADC National Chairman, Senator David Mark. Jonathan, who publicly met with politicians and party leaders for the first time since his rumoured bid to return to power, met the ADC stakeholders at the home of Mark. Seen in a viral video as he walked into the expansive residence of the former Senate President in Abuja, others with Mark were former Minister of Sports and ADC spokesperson, Malam Bolaji Abdullahi as well as a former National Publicity Secretary of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Mr. Kola Ologbondiyan, among others. Sources claimed the former president has begun consultations ahead of the 2027 polls following increasing pressure to get in the ring and ‘save’ the nation. But it was learnt that the former President's bid to return to Aso Rock on the platform of the opposition coalition may have hit an early stumbling block. At Thursday’s meeting, Mark was said to have told the former president in clear terms that the only path to the party’s presidential ticket was through the front door by formally joining the party and submitting himself to a transparent primary election. Unable to secure any guarantees, Jonathan and Mark agreed to meet again soon to review the situation. It was learnt that the ADC is moving to draft Jonathan into the race beccause he is seen as a compromise candidate, but his strong base used to be the South-East which is now the political fortress of Obi. But Jonathan is not alone in seeking assurances. Both former Vice President Atiku Abubakar and Labour Party’s 2023 presidential candidate, Peter Obi, are also pressing the ADC leadership for firm commitments before they take the plunge. The party’s new leadership, however, has refused to make such promises, a development that explains why all three leading contenders are still holding back from declaring for the party. For them, early commitment without certainty could prove politically fatal. Aligning with the ADC and then losing its ticket could leave any of the trio stranded and without a viable political vehicle ahead of 2027. Obi has consistently insisted that power must remain in the South for equity, even pledging to serve a single term if elected. But his camp remains opposed to any vice-presidential offer, warning that such a move would be politically suicidal after his strong showing in 2023. For Atiku, who resigned from the PDP in July, the plan is to complete ongoing grassroots mobilisation before formally collecting his ADC membership card in Adamawa. While Atiku insists he is ready for an open primary, his increasing influence within ADC backed by significant political investments is fuelling fears that the presidential ticket may already be tilted in his favour. That dynamic, party figures say, could force Jonathan and Obi to reconsider their strategies. Meanwhile, the ADC leadership is trying to project unity. After a caucus meeting in Abuja attended by Mark, Atiku, former governors Nasir El-Rufai, Aminu Tambuwal and Rotimi Amaechi, the party directed all undecided members to resign from their existing parties. Peter Obi, a member of the coalition party, had yet to disclaim his membership of Labour Party (LP). Atiku is also yet to get his ADC membership even though he has resigned from PDP. National Publicity Secretary of ADC, Bolaji Abdullahi, disclosed the new directive while addressing journalists in Abuja, after a caucus meeting attended by top party leaders and political figures. Abdullahi said, “Though final order has been given to all members to resign membership of other political parties, the caucus was silent on the timeline.” The caucus also announced that all issues concerning African Democratic Association (ADA) had been concluded. According to Abdullahi, “The coalition has rested everything concerning the ADA. That means they are not interested in the registration or otherwise of the association.” On the 2027 presidential race, Abdullahi said ADC’s presidential aspirants had agreed to back whoever emerged winner of the primaries. “All the presidential aspirants have agreed to support whoever wins the primaries election,” he stated. The ADC spokesman further revealed that the party’s National Working Committee (NWC) would soon announce dates for primaries in Osun and Ekiti states ahead of the off-cycle governorship elections in both states. Those present at the meeting included National Chairman, David Mark; former Vice President Atiku Abubakar; National Secretary, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola; former Kaduna State Governor, Mallam Nasir el-Rufai; former Sokoto State Governor, Senator Aminu Tambuwal; and former Rivers State Governor, Chibuike Amaechi.

Artisans accounted for 10.12 per cent, while farmers and fishers represented 9.23 per cent. Civil servants and public servants collectively made up less than five per cent.

The current figures however reflected online and initial registrations only as applicants are required to complete their registration at designated INEC physical registration centres before they can be added to the official voter register.

INEC said the physical CVR is taking place at 811 centres across the country, including all 774 Local Government Area offices and State offices, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., Monday to Friday.