INEC and the financial burden of by-elections

The optimism expressed the other day by the Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Professor Mahmud Yakubu, over the conduct of pending by-elections is a significant boost to the development of democracy in the country. It shows a marked departure from his concern earlier in January this year when the INEC boss lamented the growing number of by-elections and the attendant costs not bargained for by the commission. While the commission’s change of mood results from hope that money would be available, this portrays an ominous prevalence of cash-driven than institution-driven democracy.

The commission must move beyond Yakubu’s advocacy for legislative reform to address the rising cost of conducting by-elections. The INEC boss described the logistics of filling vacant legislative seats in the Houses of Assembly and the National Assembly as burdensome because such exercises are unbudgeted and, therefore, deplete the commission’s resources.

Yakubu explained that while the commission faces significant challenges in planning for by-elections, largely due to their unpredictable nature and frequent occurrence, the substantial increase in the 2025 budget allocation is expected to resolve some of these issues. He noted that the 2024 budget, which only covered INEC’s personnel costs, lacked provisions for conducting by-elections, leaving the commission in a problematic position despite the National Assembly’s approval of a supplementary budget in 2023 to cover nine bye-elections in February 2024.

While inadequacy of resources may pose a challenge to the conduct of elections, including by-elections, INEC should have no valid excuse, considering that by-elections are not spontaneous events but rather a statutory requirement for the democratic selection of representatives for the legislative arm of government. More so, the Electoral Act allows INEC sufficient time to plan for by-elections, which are localised exercises often characterised by low voter turnout and few incidents. Multiple by-elections should not disrupt the electoral process if adequate contingency plans are implemented. By-elections remain a critical component of the electoral system, which the commission should consider in its budget proposals.

The commission is hopeful that the increased funding in the 2025 budget will enable it to address the growing need for timely by-elections nationwide. Yakubu briefed the House of Representatives Committee on Electoral Matters, which had invited INEC to provide an update on pending by-elections, which have been delayed due to funding constraints. In January 2025, INEC proposed a sum of N126 billion for its 2025 budget. Yakubu pleaded with the National Assembly to approve the 2025 budget, which was nearly three times the size approved last year. The INEC Chairman assured that the commission would swiftly release a timetable for the pending by-elections as soon as the Appropriation Bill is passed and cash-backed.

The commission noted that since February 3, 2024, when the nine by-elections were conducted, vacancies have been declared in 16 more constituencies across 12 states. However, there was no provision for the by-elections in the commission’s 2024 budget that covered only its personnel costs and social contributions.

Notwithstanding the challenge posed by by-elections, INEC must appreciate that most Nigerians consider the overriding challenge to be the diminishing integrity of the electoral process and the attendant trust deficit. While opinions differ regarding the costs of elections in Nigeria, the more worrisome concern is that the value of election expenses appears not to reflect the quality of polls conducted in recent times. The N305 billion appropriated for the conduct of 2023 General Election, which translates to less than two per cent of the N17 trillion national budget for that year would, on the face value, appear a huge sum which should be sufficient enough to cater for off-cycle polls as well as by-elections.

However, when considered against the backdrop of the population and size of the county, expenses on elections may not have been outrageous after all. Therefore, INEC must make adequate projections that would enable it to discharge its responsibilities after the general elections. If funding poses no critical challenge for INEC ahead of general elections, there should be no issue with the by-election.

Nevertheless, the costs of by-elections would continue to pose a challenge considering the substantial resources usually allocated to logistics, which could be handled through technological devices. The resources earmarked for the maintenance of ad hoc personnel and other logistics expenses mostly account for most of the expenses during the general elections, with the same pattern replicated in the conduct of by-elections.

Election support services, which feature a high retinue of personnel on Election Day, also come into play in proportional dimension in by-elections. The elaborate style of conducting elections underscores the challenge of funding, which INEC is compelled to grapple with. Beyond adequate budgetary projections for off-circle polls, INEC should consider scaling down the elaborate style of organising polls, particularly concerning by-elections.

It should be instructive that the INEC chairman is advocating “a more cost-effective alternative” to by-elections in the bid to “prevent further disruption in the electoral process”. Since there is no alternative to by-election, the INEC must keep faith in the mandate of imbuing democracy through elections. It is unlikely that the proposal that political parties be allowed to fill vacant seats rather than through by-elections would appeal to stakeholders in the democratic process. The political parties can only serve as platforms for mobilising and organising votes and engaging based on ideology.

Those to be entrusted with the mandate of representing the people as legislators must not only be seen to merit the position but must be mandated through widespread approbation, which can only be achieved through credible elections. Allowing political parties to fill vacant seats on the ground that votes recorded in previous elections belong to political parties is a recipe for precipitating intra-party crises. The people, and not political parties, must be vested with the power to determine the choice of replacement in the event of the death or resignation of elected representatives.

Ultimately, democracy is strengthened when the electorates are regarded as repositories of power and accorded the right to choose among contending ideas, which the platforms of more than one political party guarantee. More importantly, INEC should be more interested in bridging the gaps of trust deficit due to diminishing electoral integrity under its watch. Cost-effective by-elections are achievable through the revaluation of election modality, which includes leveraging the use of technology.