More than 1.9 million Permanent Voter Cards have been collected ahead of Saturday’s Osun State governorship election, according to the Independent National Electoral Commission.
INEC said 1,906,390 PVCs had been collected out of the 2,339,233 registered voters in the state, representing 81.50 per cent of the total.
The commission disclosed this in a statement issued on Thursday by its National Commissioner and Chairman of the Information and Voter Education Committee, Mohammed Haruna.
It said the remaining 426,842 PVCs, representing 18.50 per cent, had been deposited with the Central Bank of Nigeria in accordance with its established procedure.
INEC also explained that some registered voters whose cards were damaged, defaced or lost had applied for replacements. Of those applicants, 6,101 printed downloadable copies of their voter cards.
The electoral body said details of PVC collections at each polling unit had been made available on its official website.
INEC further assured political parties, civil society organisations, the media and residents of Osun State that it was fully prepared to deliver a free, fair, credible, transparent and inclusive election on Saturday, August 15, 2026.
With the election only hours away, security preparations have also intensified across the state.
The Nigeria Police Force is deploying thousands of personnel across Osun’s 30 local government areas as part of efforts to maintain law and order and ensure a peaceful voting process.
Police sources and official statements indicate that at least four officers will be assigned to each of the state’s 3,673 polling units, apart from personnel expected from other security agencies.
The heightened security deployment comes as voters and the various candidates await the outcome of the closely watched governorship contest.
