The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has explained the reasons behind reported changes to polling units in some states, following allegations that it created 453 additional polling units nationwide without publicly announcing the exercise or consulting key electoral stakeholders.

The development has raised concerns about transparency and accountability within the electoral body ahead of the 2027 general elections.

Naija News reports that some media reports alleged that Nigeria's polling units had increased from 176,846 to 177,299, representing an additional 453 units.

However, INEC has explained that the reported changes were linked to a court ruling that resulted in the creation of new constituencies in Kogi, Benue and Delta states.

The commission's Deputy Director of Information and Publicity, Wilfred Osilama Ifogah, disclosed this during an interview with Trust TV on Wednesday, assuring Nigerians that INEC would brief stakeholders on the exercise after completing its internal processes.

Ifogah denied that the commission was secretly conducting the exercise, suggesting that details of the changes might have been leaked by an insider before INEC was ready to make an official announcement.

He explained that the creation of new constituencies following the court ruling would naturally affect the wards and polling units within the affected areas.

According to him, the commission needed to carefully examine all aspects of the exercise before making the details public.

Ifogah also clarified that the current exercise was different from the 2020 polling unit expansion, during which INEC converted existing voting points into standalone polling units to reduce congestion and improve voters' access to polling locations.

He recalled that the previous exercise was designed to address overcrowding in polling units with large numbers of registered voters.

However, the exercise attracted complaints from some voters who were relocated to different polling locations.

He maintained that the commission ensured that the newly created polling units were not situated too far from voters' previous locations.

Despite the explanation, INEC has yet to specifically confirm the reported figure of 453 additional polling units or provide a state-by-state breakdown of the changes.

The commission is also yet to publish comprehensive details of the affected locations and the administrative processes through which the reported changes were implemented.

The development comes amid increasing scrutiny of INEC's preparations for the 2027 general elections, particularly following concerns over suspicious photographs and questionable entries in the commission's preliminary Register of Voters.

INEC had earlier acknowledged concerns over photographs suspected to have been generated using artificial intelligence on some voter profiles.

In a statement issued on October 27 and signed by the Chairman of its Information and Voter Education Committee, Mohammed Kudu Haruna, the commission said it was reviewing the affected records and investigating possible technical or procedural lapses.