Encyclopedia · Voting Day
On voting day, know what to expect.
A confident voter is a hard voter to manipulate. Here's exactly what happens at the polling unit.
What to bring
Your PVC. Your fingerprint. Nothing else is required. Don't bring partisan materials into the polling unit — they may be confiscated.
How accreditation works (BVAS)
Officials scan your PVC into the BVAS machine and verify your fingerprint or facial biometric. Once accredited, you receive your ballot.
If your biometrics fail
Stay calm. Officials must follow INEC procedure for re-attempt and incident reporting. Don't leave the unit until accreditation is properly resolved.
How you vote
You receive a ballot, mark it in private, fold it, and drop it in the appropriate ballot box. One ballot per election.
Reading the result sheet (Form EC8A)
After polling closes, officials count ballots openly. Results are recorded on Form EC8A — the official polling-unit result sheet — signed by party agents and uploaded to INEC's IReV portal.
Your rights as a voter
You have the right to vote in secret. To stay until counting completes. To witness collation. To report irregularities. No one may intimidate you.
Reporting incidents
Document with timestamps and locations. Report to INEC, the Police, civil society election observers, and trusted media.