LAGOS, Kano and Kaduna have emerged as the three biggest electoral battlegrounds by voter population ahead of the 2027 general election, as the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) puts Nigeria’s registered voters at more than 110 million.
The figures, unveiled by INEC Chairman, Prof. Joash Amupitan, at a World Press Conference in Abuja on Tuesday, show that Lagos alone accounts for 7,488,633 registered voters, placing the state well ahead of every other state in the country.
Kano follows with 6,570,276 voters, while Kaduna occupies the third position with 4,662,640. Katsina, with 3,876,051 registered voters, ranks fourth, while Rivers State comes fifth with 3,736,434.
Other states in the top 10 are Oyo with 3,588,111 voters, Delta with 3,525,988, Benue with 3,057,225, Ogun with 3,037,981 and Bauchi with 3,012,547.
The distribution means that the political significance of the 2027 election will be heavily shaped by states with large voter populations, particularly Lagos and Kano, where the number of registered voters runs into several millions.
Amupitan said the current register was compiled from the three phases of the commission’s voter registration exercise, describing the 110 million figure as the largest voter register in Africa.
“The national register of voters now stands at 110 million, making Nigeria the largest democracy in Africa,” he said.
Beyond the state-by-state distribution, the register also reveals a sizeable voting population in the economically and politically influential South-South and South-West regions, with Rivers, Delta, Lagos and Ogun all featuring among the 10 states with the highest numbers.
The demographic profile further places voters aged between 35 and 49 years at the centre of the 2027 electorate. The age group accounts for 43,265,946 registered voters, representing 41.83 per cent of the register.
Voters aged 18 to 34 years constitute the next largest bloc with 29,777,576, or 28.79 per cent, while those aged 50 to 69 years number 22,982,900, representing 22.22 per cent.
Voters aged 70 years and above constitute the smallest age category, with 7,402,291 registered voters, or 7.16 per cent.
Gender distribution shows that men still slightly outnumber women on the register. Male voters stand at 53,528,218, representing 51.75 per cent, while female voters number 49,900,497.
INEC also recorded 232,658 persons with disabilities across 10 disability categories, representing about 0.2 per cent of the register.
At the lower end of the state ranking, Ekiti has the smallest registered voter population with 1,055,708, followed by Bayelsa with 1,200,691.
The Federal Capital Territory has 1,732,043 registered voters, placing it among the lowest in the country, while Yobe has 1,733,641 and Gombe 1,768,566.
With the 2027 election approaching, the figures provide a clearer picture of where the largest pools of registered voters are located and, by extension, where competing political parties and candidates face the biggest numerical stakes.
