We take a look at the numbers behind Nigeria’s elections

Nigerians are set to go to the polls on Saturday to elect the next president of Africa’s most populated state with 216 million people.

Legislative and senatorial elections will also be held on the same day. The governors and deputies of the local assemblies of most of the 36 states that make up this federal republic will be elected on March 11th.

93.5 million

The number of registered voters, according to the National Electoral Commission. The state of Lagos, the economic lung of the country (southwest), has the largest number, with 7 million registered.

3

The number of favourites among the 18 candidates (all but one are men) who are running for president:

– Atiku Abubakar, 76, is the candidate of the main opposition party, the People’s Democratic Party (PDP). This former vice-president (1999-2007) is trying his luck for the sixth time.

– Bola Tinubu, 70, is the candidate of the ruling party, the Congress of Progressives (APC). This former governor of Lagos (1999-2007), is nicknamed the “Godfather” because of his immense influence in politics.

– Peter Obi, 61, is the candidate of the Labor Party (LP). This former governor of Anambra (south-east) presents himself as the candidate for change and is ultra-popular among urban youth.

176,606

The number of polling stations spread across Nigeria (which is almost twice the size of France).

240

This is the number of polling stations that will not open on Saturday because they have no registered voters, mainly because of insecurity or because local populations have been displaced by the violence.

8:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m

These are the opening hours of the polling stations. Voters who will still be in the queue at 2:30 p.m. will be allowed to slip their ballot into the ballot box.

200,000

This is the number of electronic digital and facial recognition machines deployed in polling stations, supposed to prevent fraud and counting errors.

14

Under the Elections Act 2022, the returning officer for the presidential election must officially confirm the result, in the form of a sealed certificate, within 14 days of the poll.

2/3

To be declared the winner of the presidential election, a candidate must have obtained the highest number of votes and at least 25% of the ballots in at least two-thirds of the 36 states and in Abuja.

21

If none of the candidates qualifies, there will be a runoff between the top two candidates within 21 days, which would be a first in Nigeria’s democratic history.