The Independent National Electoral Commission has extended the ongoing Continuous Voter Registration in Anambra State by three days.

Instead of ending on July 17, INEC said the exercise would continue until July 20.

The national commissioner and chairman of the information and voter education committee, INEC, Sam Olumekun, said this in a statement on Thursday in Awka.

He said, “This decision was made during the commission’s weekly meeting held earlier today at the INEC Headquarters in Abuja.  The extension was granted in response to appeals from citizens and stakeholders who requested more time to complete their registration. The commission is pleased with the turnout of registrants in Anambra State and the peaceful conduct of the CVR in all the 326 registration centres in the state.’’

Mr Olumekun said that as of Wednesday, 96,085 new potential voters had successfully registered within nine days, averaging over 10,600 registrations per day.

He said that during the period, the commission recorded 12,595 requests for transfers of voter registration, both within and outside the state.

He said there were another 7,061 applications for updates or replacements of permanent voter cards (PVCs) due to damage or loss.

According to him, preliminary data show that women and youths are leading the charge in the exercise.

He noted, “Out of the 96,085 new registrants, 56,017, representing 58 per cent, are female, while 50,429, representing 52.48 per cent, are young people between the ages of 18 and 34.’’

He added that following the close of registration on Sunday, the commission would display the preliminary register for claims and objections, as stipulated in the Electoral Act.

“This will be followed by a comprehensive data clean-up using the Automated Biometric Identification System (ABIS). A final breakdown of registrants by age, gender, occupation, and disability will be published thereafter,” he said.

The INEC national commissioner noted that the commission received five new letters of intent from associations seeking registration as political parties, bringing the total number of applications so far to 134.

“Details of these applications, including proposed names, acronyms, logos, addresses, and interim leadership, have been made available on the commission’s website and social media platforms for public scrutiny. The commission remains committed to transparency, inclusivity, and timely dissemination of information,” he said.

He assured the public that the commission would continue to update the citizens on ongoing activities as the state governorship election approaches.

The state off-circle governorship election is scheduled for November 8.

 (NAN)