The next big threat to Nigeria’s 2027 election may not be at the polling station. It could be on a smartphone.
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has warned that increasingly sophisticated artificial intelligence tools could make election-related disinformation harder to detect—and potentially damage public confidence in the 2027 general election.
INEC Chairman Prof. Joash Amupitan, represented by National Commissioner Sani Adams (SAN), raised the alarm at the 13th Annual International Conference of the Association of Communication Scholars and Professionals of Nigeria (ACSPN) in Abuja.
The conference focused on the changing relationship between media, technology and elections in Africa, particularly the disruptive effects of digital platforms on electoral communication.
AI Makes Fake Content Easier to Produce
According to Amupitan, advances in artificial intelligence have lowered the cost and effort required to create convincing fake videos, audio recordings and images.
That creates a dangerous problem during elections.
False material can spread rapidly across social media before election officials, journalists or fact-checkers have enough time to verify it.
But INEC’s concern goes beyond fabricated content.
Amupitan warned that digital platforms can also deliver different political narratives to different groups of voters, potentially creating competing versions of reality during the same election.
That could make it increasingly difficult for citizens to agree on basic facts about what is happening.
2023 Exposed the Vulnerability
INEC said previous elections in Africa—including Nigeria’s 2023 presidential poll—demonstrated how manipulated political material can circulate during an election cycle.
The commission believes the experience should serve as a warning ahead of 2027.
Election credibility, Amupitan argued, now depends on more than what happens with the ballot itself.
Voters must also be able to identify, access and trust accurate information about the electoral process.
What BVAS and IReV Are Designed to Do
INEC introduced the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) and the INEC Result Viewing Portal (IReV) as part of efforts to strengthen transparency.
IReV allows members of the public to view polling-unit results before the final collation process, while BVAS is used in voter accreditation.
But the 2023 election also exposed weaknesses in the way electoral technology can perform and how the public understands it.
Amupitan acknowledged that technological systems must not only function reliably but also be properly explained when problems occur.
A technical failure can become a credibility crisis when voters do not understand what happened.
INEC Audits Election Technology
The commission says it is now carrying out a broad review of its technology infrastructure ahead of 2027.
The exercise includes:
- System redundancy assessments
- Penetration testing
- Disaster-recovery planning
- Reviews of the reliability of electoral technology
INEC is also considering a mock presidential election to test key systems under conditions designed to resemble an actual election.
The proposed exercise would assess areas including voter accreditation, transmission of results and public access to electronically displayed results.
Technology Spending Set to Rise
Amupitan also disclosed that INEC had proposed a substantial technology and election-operations budget.
Part of the planned spending would cover the replacement of accreditation devices that were lost or damaged during previous elections.
While the commission is still awaiting the full release of the required funds, its ICT officials have reportedly begun discussions with equipment manufacturers.
INEC’s New Fight: Speed
Technology may be creating new misinformation threats, but INEC says its response will not be to shut down legitimate debate.
Instead, the commission plans to focus on speed, education and trusted communication.
Its proposed approach includes:
- Responding more quickly to false electoral claims
- Explaining electoral technologies more clearly
- Deepening cooperation with media organisations and fact-checkers
- Expanding voter education
- Strengthening public communication before and during elections
A Younger, More Digital Electorate
Another factor is changing the information environment itself.
Amupitan said Nigeria’s 2027 electorate is expected to be younger and increasingly reliant on smartphones for political information.
That makes digital literacy more important—and puts greater pressure on electoral authorities to communicate quickly when false information begins to spread.
INEC says it intends to counter misinformation by providing accurate and timely information, rather than restricting legitimate journalism or civic discussion.
The 2027 Test
The commission’s warning points to a new reality for Nigerian elections.
Protecting the vote will not end when the ballot is cast. The information surrounding that vote may be just as important.
If convincing fake videos, audio and images can reach millions of voters before they are debunked, electoral credibility could be challenged long before results are announced.
For INEC, the preparation for 2027 is therefore not only about securing voting equipment and transmitting results.
It is also about making sure Nigerians know what to believe when the digital noise gets loudest.