Which state added the most registered voters?
Kano added the most. Its 10.96% growth ranks 17th by rate because it started with a much larger register.
Nigeria registered voters by state in 2026: full ranking and growth since 2023
The national register rose from 93.47 million in 2023 to a latest reported 103.43 million, a 10.66% net increase. Sokoto grew fastest; Kano added the most voters; and the North West alone accounted for 28.39% of the national change.
9.96m
Net increase in
registered voters
registered voters
10.66%
National growth
since 2023
since 2023
21.23%
Sokoto, fastest
state growth
state growth
58.77%
National increase
accounted for by North
accounted for by North
Nigeria voter-register growth
Which Nigerian states recorded the fastest growth in registered voters?
Percentage growth highlights places whose registers expanded fastest relative to their 2023 base. Net growth highlights where the most names were added. Both views matter, and they produce very different rankings.
Percentage increase in registered voters across all 36 states and the FCT
Scale: 0 to 21.23%Percentage change = net increase divided by the 2023 registered-voter total.
How many registered voters were added in Lagos?
Lagos recorded the fourth-largest net increase, but its 6.07% growth rate ranks 34th.
How fast did registered voters grow in Osun?
Osun ranks third nationally even though the South West has the slowest combined growth.
Which state had the slowest voter-register growth?
Plateau grew slowest. Enugu and Rivers follow at 4.97% and 5.63%; all three still recorded net gains.
Geopolitical zones
Registered voters by geopolitical zone in Nigeria
Only the North West and North East grew faster than Nigeria as a whole. The North West added 2.83 million registered voters—more than any other zone and 28.39% of the national net increase. The South West posted the lowest rate, yet still added the second-largest number because its register was already large.
Registered-voter growth by zone
Bars show percentage increase from each zone’s combined 2023 base. Green bars exceed the 10.66% national rate.
North Central includes the Federal Capital Territory.
28.39% of national growth
Registered voters in the North West grew fastest
Sokoto, Jigawa, Zamfara and Kebbi all sit in the national top ten by percentage growth. Kano supplied the country’s largest absolute increase.
1.66m added
How many registered voters did the South West add?
Its 9.22% growth is the slowest of the six zones, but its net increase trails only the North West. Lagos’s large base and 6.07% growth pull down the combined rate.
11.98m latest total
How many registered voters are in the South East?
The South East remains the smallest register, but its 9.80% growth exceeds both the South South and South West.
North–South balance
Registered voters in Northern and Southern Nigeria compared
The national register shifted 0.49 percentage points towards the North. Grouping the three northern zones together, including the FCT, shows that the North grew by 11.67% while the South grew by 9.48%.
+0.49ppincrease in the North’s share of the national register since 2023
| Grouping | 2023 register | Latest reported | Net increase | Growth | Share of net increase |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| North, including FCT | 50,161,722 | 56,014,673 | 5,852,951 | 11.67% | 58.77% |
| South | 43,307,286 | 47,414,042 | 4,106,756 | 9.48% | 41.23% |
The zone ranking by total registered voters has not changed: North West, South West, North Central, South South, North East and South East. Register size does not predict turnout or how people will vote.
All states and FCT
Nigeria registered voters by state: complete 2026 ranking
The table ranks all 36 states and the FCT by percentage growth in registered voters since 2023. The green marker identifies the 18 geographies above Nigeria’s 10.66% growth rate.
| Rank | State / FCT | Zone | 2023 register | Latest reported | Net increase | % increase |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sokoto | North West | 2,172,056 | 2,633,113 | +461,057 | 21.23% |
| 2 | Jigawa | North West | 2,351,298 | 2,807,811 | +456,513 | 19.42% |
| 3 | Osun | South West | 1,954,800 | 2,327,784 | +372,984 | 19.08% |
| 4 | Yobe | North East | 1,485,146 | 1,733,671 | +248,525 | 16.73% |
| 5 | Kogi | North Central including FCT | 1,932,654 | 2,232,398 | +299,744 | 15.51% |
| 6 | Zamfara | North West | 1,926,870 | 2,224,017 | +297,147 | 15.42% |
| 7 | Edo | South South | 2,501,081 | 2,865,263 | +364,182 | 14.56% |
| 8 | Ebonyi | South East | 1,597,646 | 1,828,056 | +230,410 | 14.42% |
| 9 | Kebbi | North West | 2,032,041 | 2,309,503 | +277,462 | 13.65% |
| 10 | Bayelsa | South South | 1,056,862 | 1,200,691 | +143,829 | 13.61% |
| 11 | Ogun | South West | 2,688,305 | 3,037,981 | +349,676 | 13.01% |
| 12 | Kwara | North Central including FCT | 1,695,927 | 1,916,376 | +220,449 | 13.00% |
| 13 | Nasarawa | North Central including FCT | 1,899,244 | 2,137,699 | +238,455 | 12.56% |
| 14 | Gombe | North East | 1,575,794 | 1,768,566 | +192,772 | 12.23% |
| 15 | Imo | South East | 2,419,922 | 2,706,052 | +286,130 | 11.82% |
| 16 | Taraba | North East | 2,022,374 | 2,254,380 | +232,006 | 11.47% |
| 17 | Kano | North West | 5,921,370 | 6,570,276 | +648,906 | 10.96% |
| 18 | Adamawa | North East | 2,196,566 | 2,431,146 | +234,580 | 10.68% |
| 19 | Niger | North Central including FCT | 2,698,344 | 2,983,476 | +285,132 | 10.57% |
| 20 | FCT | North Central including FCT | 1,570,307 | 1,732,043 | +161,736 | 10.30% |
| 21 | Katsina | North West | 3,516,719 | 3,876,051 | +359,332 | 10.22% |
| 22 | Benue | North Central including FCT | 2,777,727 | 3,057,225 | +279,498 | 10.06% |
| 23 | Borno | North East | 2,513,281 | 2,765,165 | +251,884 | 10.02% |
| 24 | Anambra | South East | 2,656,437 | 2,917,728 | +261,291 | 9.84% |
| 25 | Bauchi | North East | 2,749,268 | 3,012,547 | +263,279 | 9.58% |
| 26 | Oyo | South West | 3,276,675 | 3,588,111 | +311,436 | 9.50% |
| 27 | Delta | South South | 3,221,697 | 3,525,988 | +304,291 | 9.45% |
| 28 | Cross River | South South | 1,766,466 | 1,928,978 | +162,512 | 9.20% |
| 29 | Akwa Ibom | South South | 2,357,418 | 2,566,196 | +208,778 | 8.86% |
| 30 | Abia | South East | 2,120,808 | 2,306,520 | +185,712 | 8.76% |
| 31 | Kaduna | North West | 4,335,208 | 4,662,640 | +327,432 | 7.55% |
| 32 | Ekiti | South West | 987,647 | 1,055,708 | +68,061 | 6.89% |
| 33 | Ondo | South West | 1,991,344 | 2,116,057 | +124,713 | 6.26% |
| 34 | Lagos | South West | 7,060,195 | 7,488,633 | +428,438 | 6.07% |
| 35 | Rivers | South South | 3,537,190 | 3,736,434 | +199,244 | 5.63% |
| 36 | Enugu | South East | 2,112,793 | 2,217,862 | +105,069 | 4.97% |
| 37 | Plateau | North Central including FCT | 2,789,528 | 2,906,570 | +117,042 | 4.20% |
Method and sources
How Nigeria’s registered-voter growth was calculated
Mundx subtracted each state’s 2023 registered-voter total from its latest reported total, then divided the difference by the 2023 figure. Zone and North–South rates were recalculated from the combined underlying totals—not averaged from state percentages. These are changes in the register, not turnout forecasts.
INEC reported 93,469,008 registered voters for the 2023 general election. Open the INEC election report ↗
The 103,428,715 total and state figures were announced by INEC on 6 October 2026 after the three-phase CVR and biometric clean-up. Read the briefing report ↗
Registration totals measure the size of the register. They do not show PVC collection, election-day turnout, party preference or how many of the net additions are first-time registrants.
01 · State rate
(Latest reported total − 2023 total) ÷ 2023 total.
02 · Zone rate
Combined zone net increase ÷ combined zone 2023 register.
03 · North
North West, North East and North Central, including the FCT.
04 · South
South East, South South and South West.
Percentages are rounded to two decimal places. National and zone shares may differ by 0.01 percentage points because of rounding. Published 6 October 2026.
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