The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) on Monday announced that it would conduct mock elections in preparation for the November 11 governorship elections in Bayelsa, Imo, and Kogi states.
INEC National Commissioner and Chairman of the Information and Voter Education Committee, Sam Olumekun, made this announcement in a statement.
According to him, maximum of three polling units in each Senatorial District have been identified across each of the three states, covering a total of nine Senatorial Districts and 27 polling units.
Olumekun stressed that the full details of the polling units, including their locations by Local Government Area (LGA), Registration Area (RA)/Ward, Delimitation Code and number of registered voters, have been uploaded to the Commission’s website and social media platforms.
He added that the mock election would be held simultaneously and the lessons learnt from the exercise will be taken into consideration in ensuring a seamless process on Election Day.
Olumekun explained, “The Commission held a meeting on Monday, September 25, 2023, and reviewed preparations for the forthcoming off-cycle Governorship elections in Bayelsa, Imo, and Kogi States, scheduled for Saturday, November 11, 2023.
“As was done in previous off-cycle governorship elections, the Commission will conduct a mock accreditation using the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) and upload polling unit results to the INEC Result Viewing Portal (IReV). The test run will occur simultaneously in the three States on Saturday, October 14, 2023, from 8.30 am to 2.30 pm.”
The Commission encouraged registered voters in the selected polling units to participate with their Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs).
It also emphasized that the mock election is solely a test accreditation exercise and not the actual election.