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Nigeria Holds By-elections Today Across Many States to Fill Vacant Seats
On Saturday August 16, 2025, Nigerians in different parts of the country went to the polls as the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) conducted a series of elections to fill vacant seats in the National Assembly and state legislatures.
The seats became vacant after a mix of resignations, deaths, and court-ordered reruns following disputes from the 2023 general elections.
The elections include two senatorial districts, in Anambra and Edo, five federal constituencies across Ogun, Jigawa, Kaduna, Oyo, and Edo, and nine state assembly constituencies spread across Adamawa, Anambra, Kano, Kaduna, Kogi, Niger, Taraba, and Zamfara. Two additional reruns were ordered in Enugu South I and Gh ari/Tsanyawa in Kano, where earlier polls were either cancelled or disrupted.
Altogether, more than 3.5 million voters are registered to take part. The process cuts across 32 local government areas, over 350 wards, and nearly 7,000 polling units, with INEC deploying about 30,000 officials to manage the vote.
Security has been one of the main talking points. The Inspector-General of Police ordered heavy deployment across the affected states and banned VIPs from moving around with escorts or armed aides near polling stations. A restriction of movement from midnight until 6pm was also enforced in most areas to reduce the risk of violence and ballot disruption.
In Edo State, nearly 8,000 police officers were on duty, with security checkpoints mounted across senatorial zones. In Kano, security was even tighter following recent arrests of suspected political thugs. Authorities moved quickly to prevent any clashes at polling stations. Kaduna, Ogun, and Taraba also witnessed increased deployments, with local police and civil defence officers stationed at voting centres.
The Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) added another 20,000 personnel nationwide to support the police, making today one of the most heavily policed by-elections in recent memory.
The elections did not come without political drama.
A late-night ruling by a Federal High Court allowed the Social Democratic Party (SDP) to field candidates after initially being barred by INEC over disputes from its primaries. The judgment forced INEC to adjust its list at the last minute, though the commission has said it will appeal.
In Kaduna, the African Democratic Congress (ADC) and the SDP accused the state government of plotting to tilt the process in its favour, a claim the authorities denied. Meanwhile, uncertainty still surrounds the Labour Party’s participation, with legal battles still ongoing in some constituencies.
Reports On Ground
Turnout has so far varied by location. In some polling units in Oyo and Anambra, early reports suggested low voter turnout, though the atmosphere remained peaceful. In Edo Central, voters complained about slow accreditation due to BVAS machines, while in Anambra South, Governor Charles Soludo commended residents for keeping the exercise calm and orderly.
INEC has assured Nigerians that results will be uploaded to its IReV portal once voting closes, usually between 3pm and 4pm, to ensure transparency.
The Minister of Education, Dr. Tunji Alausa, has commended the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) for its use of technology to combat fraud and improve its operations.
He praised the NYSC for the transformation it has undergone and its use of technology to improve the deployment of corps members.
He said “I would like to commend you for all the transformation that you have brought to NYSC and the use of technology to ensure seamless operations and deployment of Corps Members.”
The NYSC has continued to strengthen its use of technology as part of efforts to tackle fraud, improve its processes and enhance the deployment of corps members.
It has been reported that there was an attack on the convoy of Peter Obi in Benue State as a crowd supporting the presidential candidate ahead of the 2027 elections was reportedly attacked.
The incident reportedly resulted in more than 10 youths sustaining injuries.
The injured victims were taken to the Benue State University Teaching Hospital (BSUTH), Makurdi, for treatment. A hospital official confirmed that more than 10 wounded people were brought in for urgent medical attention.
Peter Obi has called for an investigation into the incident and accused the Special Assistant to Governor Hyacinth Alia on Youths of masterminding the attack and mobilising youths to stop the support movement.
The hospital official said: “Over 10 wounded victims were brought in here yesterday for urgent medical attention. They are being treated. I don’t know where they came from. We don’t know whether they were involved in Peter Obi’s incident yesterday or not.”
Kwara State is planning to increase livestock production in the state and create higher incomes for farmers and pastoralists.
The commissioner shared “Our ultimate objective is to move Kwara from livestock keeping to a commercially driven livestock economy capable of creating jobs, improving food security, strengthening rural livelihoods and increasing the income of farmers and pastoralists,” .
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