The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has created an additional 1,235 polling units in Imo state to expand access to voters ahead of the 2023 elections, totaling the State’s polling units to a sum of total 4,758.
The Resident Electoral Commissioner, Francis Chukwuemeka Ezeonu, said in Owerri on Wednesday that the polling units were created with threshold of accommodating 500 to 750 registered voters in each polling unit.
The new polling in Imo state confirmed L.G.A locations consist of; Owerri municipality with the highest number at 122 new polling unit, followed closely by Owerri West with 117 polling units.
Owerri North and Ikeduru local government areas with 91 and 80 polling units respectively while Aboh Mbaise got 79 new polling units.
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Existing laws allow the elections regulator to convert existing voting point settlements to full-fledged voting units and relocate new or existing ones to place they are closer to voters and unserved areas, where necessary.
The Commissioner further added that as far as practicable, polling units are to be located in public places, preferably centrally located and accessible, non-partisan, non-sectarian locations such as schools and town halls.
Provision, he said, were also made for spacious facilities to cater for adequately sitting electoral officers, political party agents, election observers and voters if necessary.
