Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has announced that more than 1.9 million registered voters in Osun State have collected their Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs) ahead of Saturday’s governorship election.
According to figures released by the electoral body on Thursday, 1,906,390 PVCs, representing 81.5 per cent of the state’s 2,339,233 registered voters, have been collected during the official distribution period.
The commission disclosed that 432,843 PVCs, accounting for 18.5 per cent of registered voters, were not collected. INEC stated that, in line with established procedures, all unclaimed voter cards have been secured in the vaults of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and will remain there until after the election.
The electoral body also revealed that 6,101 voters who applied for replacements due to lost, damaged or defaced PVCs successfully received new copies, making them eligible to participate in the poll.
To promote transparency and boost public confidence in the electoral process, INEC said it has published a detailed breakdown of PVC collection figures for every polling unit across Osun State on its official website.
“The Commission reassures political parties, civil society organisations, media, and the good people of Osun State of its total readiness to conduct a free, fair, credible, transparent, and inclusive election,” said Mohammed Haruna, National Commissioner and Chairman of the Information and Voter Education Committee.
The Osun governorship election is scheduled for Saturday, August 15, 2026, and is expected to serve as a significant test of the political landscape in Nigeria’s South-West region.
The election is expected to attract close attention from domestic and international observers, with election monitoring groups set to assess voting procedures, logistics, security arrangements and compliance across thousands of polling units in the state