The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) says over 1.4 million members of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) will be deployed as staffs for the 2027 general election across Nigeria.
INEC Chairman, Joash Amupitan, disclosed this on Monday when he paid a courtesy visit to the Director-General of the NYSC, Olakunle Nafiu, at the Yakubu Gowon House in Abuja, Federal Capital Territory.
Amupitan said the engagement with the NYSC leadership was not a routine visit but a mission of appreciation, stressing that corps members remain central to Nigeria’s electoral process.
He noted that corps members have participated in election cycles since 1999, adding that INEC cannot successfully conduct elections in Nigeria without their involvement.
According to him, corps members provide neutrality, credibility and efficiency in polling units across the country due to their discipline and level of education.
Amupitan recalled that about 1.2 million staffs were deployed for the 2023 general election, with more than 70 percent drawn from the NYSC and student volunteers.
He explained that for the 2027 elections, INEC would require 707,384 corps members for the presidential and National Assembly elections scheduled for January 16, 2027, and the same number for the governorship and state assembly elections on February 6, 2027, bringing the total to 1,414,768.
He also said additional corps members would be needed for governorship elections in Ekiti and Osun states, as well as bye-elections in Nasarawa, Enugu, Rivers, Ondo, Kebbi and Kano states.
The INEC chairman added that corps members often make up a significant portion of presiding officers and registration area officers in many states, noting their role in ensuring smooth electoral operations across polling units nationwide.
He also praised their use of technology in supporting the bimodal voter accreditation system (BVAS), describing them as a key backbone of Nigeria’s modern electoral process.
Amupitan, however, acknowledged the risks faced by corps members during elections, saying the commission is working with security agencies to strengthen safety measures and improve welfare and insurance packages for those deployed.
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