How to Find Your Polling Unit for the 2027 Election: INEC Portal Steps, Your PU Code and What to Do If You Can’t Find It

Every registered voter in Nigeria is attached to one polling unit, and on election day that is the only place your name will be on the register. With the presidential and National Assembly elections on 16 January 2027 and the governorship and state assembly elections on 6 February 2027, now is the time to confirm yours, while there is still time to fix a problem.

This guide uses the Independent National Electoral Commission’s (INEC) own voter portal, which we checked on 1 November 2026. It walks you through both ways of searching, explains the code printed on your Permanent Voter Card (PVC), and covers what to do if your name does not come up.

The 2027 Election Dates You Need

Election	Date	Campaigns end
Presidential and National Assembly	Saturday, 16 January 2027	Friday, 15 January 2027
Governorship and State Houses of Assembly	Saturday, 6 February 2027	Friday, 5 February 2027
Voting hours (both elections)	8:30am to 2:30pm	Accreditation and voting happen at the same time

INEC says voters must present their PVC so it can be checked on the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS). The BVAS at each polling unit carries the register for that unit only, which is why turning up at the wrong polling unit means you cannot vote, even with a valid card.

For the full timetable and what changed under the Electoral Act 2026, see our complete guide to the 2027 election.

Before You Start: What You Need

• The state and local government (LGA) where you registered. This is where you registered, not where you live now. If you registered in Surulere and moved to Ikorodu, you are still a Surulere voter unless you transferred during the registration window.
• Your name exactly as you registered it, including the spelling you used at the time.
• Your date of birth as you gave it at registration.
• Or your VIN. It is printed on your PVC and on the Temporary Voter’s Card (the paper slip) you were given when you registered.
• A phone or computer with data. The portal works in a mobile browser; no app is needed.

Method 1: Check Voter Status with Your Name and Date of Birth

Use this if you do not have your PVC with you.

1. Open cvr.inecnigeria.org in your browser.
2. Tap Check Voter Status in the menu. This opens INEC’s Voter Verification Service.
3. Under Check Status Using Your Name & Date of Birth, choose your State of Registration.
4. Choose your Local Government of Registration from the list that appears.
5. Type your Last Name and First Name.
6. Select the day, month and year of your birth.
7. Complete the security check and submit.

If your details match a record, the portal shows your registration details, including where you are registered. Write down the polling unit name and its code, or take a screenshot.

Method 2: Check Voter Status with Your VIN

This is the more reliable search, because a VIN belongs to one voter only and is not affected by how your name was spelt.

1. On the same Check Voter Status page, go to Check Status Using VIN.
2. Choose your State of Registration and Local Government of Registration.
3. Type your Last Name.
4. Enter your full VIN or just the last 10 characters of it. INEC’s form accepts either.
5. Complete the security check and submit.

Your VIN is on the front of your PVC. If you never collected your card, look for the Temporary Voter’s Card slip from your registration, which also carries it. Keep both safe: the VIN is the quickest way to sort out any problem with INEC.

How to Read the Code on Your PVC

Your PVC carries a code made of numbers separated by slashes or dashes. It is your polling unit’s address in INEC’s system, read from left to right:

Part	What it means	Example
1st number	Your state	24 = Lagos
2nd number	Your local government area	The LGA’s number within the state
3rd number	Your registration area (ward)	The ward’s number within the LGA
4th number	Your polling unit	The unit’s number within the ward

The state numbers are the same ones INEC uses in its Polling Unit Locator. They follow the alphabetical order of the 36 states, with the FCT added at the end as 37:

Code	State	Code	State
01	Abia	20	Katsina
02	Adamawa	21	Kebbi
03	Akwa Ibom	22	Kogi
04	Anambra	23	Kwara
05	Bauchi	24	Lagos
06	Bayelsa	25	Nasarawa
07	Benue	26	Niger
08	Borno	27	Ogun
09	Cross River	28	Ondo
10	Delta	29	Osun
11	Ebonyi	30	Oyo
12	Edo	31	Plateau
13	Ekiti	32	Rivers
14	Enugu	33	Sokoto
15	Gombe	34	Taraba
16	Imo	35	Yobe
17	Jigawa	36	Zamfara
18	Kaduna	37	FCT
19	Kano

If the first number on your card does not match the state you expected, you may have registered somewhere other than where you think, or transferred your registration. Check with your VIN before election day.

Method 3: Get Directions with the Polling Unit Locator

Once you know which polling unit you belong to, the Polling Unit Locator helps you find it on the ground.

1. On cvr.inecnigeria.org, tap Polling Unit Locator.
2. Select your State.
3. Select your Local Government.
4. Select your Registration Area (your ward).
5. Select your Polling Unit.

The locator then shows where the unit is. INEC’s own note on the page warns that the directions are approximate and advises voters to visit the location before election day to confirm it. Take that advice seriously: many polling units sit inside schools, churches, mosques, markets or under open sheds, and the gate you need may not be the one on the main road.

Plan Your Election Day Now

When	What to do
This week	Confirm your polling unit with your VIN and screenshot the result
Before December	Visit the polling unit once, in daylight, and note landmarks and the nearest gate
Early January	Check where your PVC is and keep it with your other important documents
Friday, 15 January	Plan transport: movement is often restricted on election day, so expect to walk
Saturday, 16 January	Arrive early with your PVC; voting is from 8:30am to 2:30pm

If you live far from where you registered, plan the trip early. Inter-state travel around election weekends is usually busy, and restrictions on movement on polling day can make the last stretch slow.

What to Do If Your Name Doesn’t Show

Problem	What to try
Your name was spelt differently at registration	Search again with your VIN instead of your name
You chose the LGA where you live now	Choose the LGA where you registered
You entered your first name and surname the wrong way round	Swap them and search again
You registered or transferred in the 2025–2026 exercise	INEC says it will send an email once processing is finished; check your inbox and spam folder, and search with your VIN
The security check fails	Try again later; the search cannot run without it
Nothing works	Contact INEC or visit the INEC office in your LGA with your PVC or Temporary Voter’s Card

You can reach INEC’s Citizens’ Contact Centre by email at iccc@inec.gov.ng or by phone on 0700-2255-4632, both listed on the voter portal. If you go to your LGA office, take your PVC or registration slip and a photocopy, and ask the officer to look you up by VIN.

If You Moved After You Registered

The last Continuous Voter Registration (CVR) phase closed on 26 July 2026, and INEC has announced no new window before the elections. That means transfers are no longer possible. If you have moved state or LGA since registering, you can still vote, but only at your original polling unit. For many people that means travelling home for the election weekends of 16 January and 6 February.

If You Have Lost Your PVC

INEC introduced a downloadable PVC under the Electoral Act 2026 for voters whose collected card has been lost, defaced or is unreadable. A complaint must be lodged at least 90 days before the election you want to vote in. For the 16 January presidential election, that date passed on 18 October 2026. By our count, 90 days before the governorship election on 6 February 2027 falls on Sunday, 8 November 2026, so if you lost a card you had already collected, go to your INEC LGA office this week.

Read our downloadable PVC guide for who qualifies, and if you have not yet collected your card, see how to check if your PVC is ready.

Who Is on the Ballot

Your polling unit is where you will choose a president, senator and House of Representatives member on 16 January, and in most states a governor and state assembly member on 6 February. INEC’s final lists are in our guides to the 2027 presidential candidates and the governorship candidates in Lagos, Kano, Rivers and Oyo.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do I know my polling unit with my VIN?

Go to cvr.inecnigeria.org, tap Check Voter Status, and use the “Check Status Using VIN” form. Choose your state and LGA of registration, type your last name and enter your full VIN or its last 10 characters.

Can I check my polling unit without my PVC?

Yes. Use the name and date of birth search on the same page. You need your state and LGA of registration, your last name, first name and date of birth.

Can I vote at any polling unit?

No. You can only vote at the polling unit where you are registered, because the BVAS there carries only that unit’s register.

What time does voting start and end in 2027?

INEC says accreditation and voting take place at the same time, from 8:30am to 2:30pm, on 16 January and 6 February 2027.

Is there a fee to check my polling unit?

No. INEC’s portal is free. Ignore anyone who asks you to pay to check your voter details.

I registered in 2026 but my name doesn’t show. What should I do?

Search again with your VIN. INEC says applicants from the last registration exercise will get an email once processing is complete. If you still cannot find your record, contact INEC or visit your LGA office with your registration slip.

---

Sources

1. INEC – Continuous Voter Registration portal, “Check Voter Status” (Voter Verification Service) and “Polling Unit Locator” pages, cvr.inecnigeria.org, checked 1 November 2026
2. INEC – Full Election Calendar and election-day directive on accreditation and voting hours, inecnigeria.org, checked 1 November 2026
3. INEC – Official campaign timetable for the 2027 General Elections, signed by the Chairman, Prof. Joash Amupitan, published 29 July 2026

Last updated: 1 November 2026 · NaijaSabi Civic Desk. NaijaSabi does not support any party or candidate. If INEC changes its portal or guidelines, we will update this guide.