The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has officially announced that the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) area council elections will be held on February 21, 2026.
The announcement was made by the INEC Chairman, Mahmood Yakubu, during a consultative meeting with political parties in Abuja on Wednesday, January 22.
Yakubu explained that the last area council election in the FCT took place on February 12, 2022, and the tenure of the current chairmen and councillors will come to an end in 2026. Consequently, INEC has approved the date for the next election, which will be held on Saturday, February 21, 2026.
“Voting will take place in all the designated Polling Units across the 68 constituencies to elect the six Area Council Chairmen and 62 Councilors,” Yakubu said.
In line with legal requirements, INEC has set out a comprehensive timetable for the election.
The notice for the election will be published on February 26, 2025, with party primaries scheduled to run from June 9 to June 30, 2025. The portal for candidate nominations will be open from 9:00am on July 21, 2025, to 6:00pm on August 11, 2025.
“The final list of candidates will be published on September 22, 2025. Campaigns will commence on September 24, 2025, and end at midnight on February 19, 2026,” Yakubu added.
To aid political parties in their preparations, Yakubu stated that the detailed timetable, schedule of activities, and lists of constituencies and elections will be made available on INEC’s website and in hard copies distributed at the meeting.
Further plans, including the resumption of nationwide Continuous Voter Registration (CVR) and the conduct of outstanding bye-elections, will be announced in due course.
The INEC Chairman also mentioned that political parties will be guided by the 2022 Regulations and Guidelines for Political Parties, which are available on the INEC website.
Yakubu also provided updates regarding the upcoming Anambra State governorship election, which is scheduled for November 8, 2025.
He reminded party leaders that primaries for the nomination of candidates for the Anambra governorship election will take place from March 20 to April 10, 2025.
He urged political parties to submit their schedules for party primaries and campaign activities to the commission to ensure a more coordinated effort in resource deployment and monitoring.
“Only a few parties are in compliance with our request so far. I urge those that have not yet done so to submit their details by the end of this week,” Yakubu stressed.
With the 2026 FCT area council elections now officially scheduled, INEC has set a clear roadmap to ensure that the election process runs smoothly and efficiently, while also calling on political parties to prepare for upcoming electoral activities in other regions, particularly in Anambra.
