…Reaffirms commitment to credible polls

By Marie-Therese Nanlong

Jos – The Plateau State Independent Electoral Commission (PLASIEC) has released an updated timetable for the conduct of the 2026 Local Government Elections, reaffirming its commitment to transparency, inclusiveness and the delivery of a credible electoral process across the State.

The revised schedule was announced on Friday, during a press briefing held at the Commission’s headquarters in Jos.

The PLASIEC Chairman, Plangji Cishak, who addressed journalists, representatives of political parties, civil society organisations and security agencies recalled that the Commission had earlier issued the Notice of Election in September 2025, in line with the provisions of the PLASIEC Law, 2024, and the Electoral Act, 2022, to formally kick-start preparations for the 2026 local government polls.

He explained that the review of the timetable became necessary to fine-tune critical pre-election activities and ensure a seamless process ahead of the polls now fixed for Wednesday, 9 September 2026.

According to the Chairman, the adjustments were informed by legal, administrative and operational considerations, with the overriding objective of strengthening coordination, accountability and inclusiveness.

He stressed that all changes strictly comply with existing electoral laws and reflect the Commission’s core values of transparency, excellence and effective stakeholder engagement.

Under the updated timetable, political parties are expected to conduct their primaries, including the resolution of disputes arising from them, between Saturday, 7 March and Thursday, 12 March 2026.

The Commission noted that the new dates would allow parties sufficient time to democratically nominate candidates and address internal grievances before moving to the next stage of the process.

The collection of nomination forms by political parties has been rescheduled to run from Friday, 13 March to Tuesday, 17 March 2026, while the submission of completed nomination forms will take place between Wednesday, 18 March and Thursday, 19 March 2026, at the PLASIEC headquarters.

PLASIEC will publish the personal particulars of candidates on Saturday, 21 March 2026, at its headquarters and across local government offices, and this will be followed by the verification and screening of chairmanship candidates and their running mates from Monday, 23 March to Tuesday, 24 March 2026.

Screening of councillorship candidates is slated for Wednesday, 25 March to Saturday, 28 March 2026.

The list of qualified and cleared candidates is scheduled for publication on Monday, 30 March 2026. Appeal cases will be received on Tuesday, 31 March, with hearings fixed for Wednesday, 1 April 2026. Thereafter, the final list of nominated candidates will be released on Thursday, 9 April 2026.

Public campaigns by political parties will officially commence on Saturday, 11 April 2026, in accordance with the law.

Cishak further disclosed that the official register of voters for the election will be published on Tuesday, 21 July 2026, while political parties are required to submit the names and addresses of their polling agents by Wednesday, 12 August 2026.

Campaign activities will end at midnight on Monday, 7 September 2026, ahead of the election day scheduled for Wednesday, 9 September 2026.

The PLASIEC Chairman urged all stakeholders to carefully study the updated timetable and cooperate fully with the Commission, assuring that sustained collaboration and accurate information dissemination are essential to the successful conduct of peaceful and credible local government elections in the State.