129 associations now seeking INEC’s registration as political parties

By Lateef Ibrahim, Abuja

The number of political associations seeking registration as political parties from the Independent National Electoral Commission INEC has increased to one hundred and twenty-nine (129).

This was confirmed in a statement on Thursday by INEC National Commissioner and Chairman, Information and Voter Education Committee, Mr Sam Olumekun in Abuja.

The statement explained that since last week, seven more applications were received by INEC, in addition to the one hundred and twenty-two that were earlier received.

All the requests, according to the statement by Olumekun, are being processed.

The statement explained that unlike the manual method used in previous registration, the Commission is introducing a political party registration portal which is a module in INEC’s Party Financial Reporting and Auditing.

The statement by Olumekun reads, “At its regular weekly meeting held today (Thursday 10th July 2025), the Commission received further update on additional requests from associations seeking registration as political parties. “Since last week, seven more applications have been received, bringing the total number so far to 129. “All the requests are being processed.

“Unlike the manual method used in previous registration, the Commission is introducing a political party registration portal which is a module in our Party Financial Reporting and Auditing System (PFRAS).

“This will make the process faster and seamless. “In the next one week, the Commission will conclude the final testing of the portal before deployment.

“Thereafter, the next step for associations that meet the requirements to proceed to the application stage will be announced.

“The Commission will also issue guidelines to facilitate the filing of applications using the PFRAS.

“Meanwhile, the list of the new associations has been uploaded to our website and other platforms for public information”, the statement concluded.