A total of 4,223 candidates from 18 political parties have been cleared by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to contest for 469 senates and House of Representatives seats in the 2023 general elections.
The commission also cleared 36 presidential candidates and the running mates of 18 political parties.
This was revealed by the commission in the final list of candidates for national elections, namely presidential, senatorial and federal constituencies it released on Tuesday in line with the 2023 elections timetable.
A breakdown of the 4,223 candidates shows that 1,101 candidates are vying for 109 Senate seats and 3,122 candidates are vying for House of Representatives seats.
On the other hand, 381 females, comprising one for the Presidency, 92 for the Senate, and 288 for the House of Representatives, are contesting. There are also 11 people with disabilities in the race.
INEC National Commissioner in Charge of Voters’ Education, Festus Okoye in a statement on Tuesday said the final list of candidates for state elections (governorship and state constituencies) would be published on October 4, 2022.
He said the list that was published by the commission contained the names of individuals who were validly nominated by their parties.
He said, “The list published today contains the names of candidates validly nominated for national elections at the close of party primaries and the period earmarked for withdrawal and substitution of candidates. The final list of candidates for state elections (governorship and state constituencies) will be published on October 4, 2022, as already indicated on the timetable and schedule of activities for the 2023 general election.”
