The Nigerian Senate has directed the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, to conduct by-elections to fill the vacant seats in Edo Central and Anambra South Senatorial Districts.
The President of the senate, Senator Godswill Akpabio, gave the order on Tuesday at plenary while officially declaring the seats vacant.
INEC had in January 2025, stated that it was awaiting a formal request from the Senate before proceeding with the by-elections.
The vacancy in Edo Central District arose from the election of Senator Monday Okpebholo of the All Progressive Congress, APC, as Edo State governor in 2024, while the vacancy in Anambra South was occasioned by the death of senator Ifeanyi Uba, also of the APC, on 27 July 2024.
The upper legislative chamber had earlier declared the Edo Central seat vacant in 2024 after a valedictory session in honour of Senator Okpebholo.
The Resident Electoral Commissioner in Anambra State, Elizabeth Agu, had recently expressed the commission’s commitment to conducting by-elections once directed by the Senate.
Agu made the remark during a stakeholders’ dialogue organised by the International Press Centre in Awka, the state capital.
