The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has announced plans to deploy more than 1.4 million National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) members as ad hoc staff for the 2027 general elections.
INEC Chairman, Joash Amupitan, disclosed this during a courtesy visit to the NYSC Director-General, Olakunle Nafiu, at the Yakubu Gowon House in Abuja on Monday.
According to Amupitan, corps members have remained a critical part of Nigeria’s electoral process since 1999, stressing that INEC heavily relies on them for election duties across the country.
He described NYSC members as dedicated, educated and patriotic, noting that their involvement helps strengthen public confidence in the electoral process.
The INEC chairman revealed that during the 2023 elections, about 1.2 million ad hoc workers were engaged, with more than 70 percent drawn from NYSC members and student volunteers.
For the 2027 elections, he said INEC would require 707,384 corps members for the presidential and national assembly elections scheduled for January 16, 2027, and another 707,384 for the governorship and state assembly elections on February 6, 2027.
This brings the total number of corps members expected to participate in the two election phases to 1,414,768.
Amupitan also disclosed that an additional 52,446 corps members would be deployed for governorship elections in Ekiti and Osun states, alongside bye-elections in Nasarawa, Enugu, Rivers, Ondo, Kebbi and Kano states.
He added that corps members played major roles during previous elections, especially in operating the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS), helping ensure smooth accreditation and voting processes nationwide.
The INEC chairman further assured that the commission would continue working with security agencies and the NYSC to improve the safety, welfare and insurance coverage of corps members participating in election duties.
