Independent National Electoral Commission Chairman Joash Amupitan has said Nigerians, not artificial intelligence algorithms, will determine the outcome of the 2027 general elections, warning that deepfakes and digital disinformation could threaten voters’ ability to make informed choices.
Amupitan spoke on Wednesday at the Artificial Intelligence and Democracy Forum 2026 in Abuja, where electoral officials, political parties, civil society organisations, media executives and technology companies discussed ways to protect the electoral process from AI-related threats.
The forum, co-convened by INEC and Yiaga Africa, was themed Safeguarding the 2027 General Elections in the Age of Artificial Intelligence.
“Algorithms will not, and must never, decide the 2027 vote. The choice of who leads Nigeria belongs exclusively to the Nigerian people,” the INEC chairman said.
He acknowledged that artificial intelligence would influence how voters receive information, how election materials are deployed and how political actors communicate with the electorate.
“Algorithms may predict patterns; they may optimise routes, and they may even suggest preferences. But they do not have a conscience, they do not have a country, and they do not have a vote,” he added.
INEC warns against deepfakes
Amupitan identified generative AI, deepfakes, synthetic media, targeted political advertising, algorithmic bias and automated cyberattacks as threats to the credibility of the 2027 elections.
He warned that fabricated audio, videos and images could be used to mislead voters and weaken public confidence in authentic electoral information.
“The greatest threat we face is not the hacking of a ballot box, but the hacking of the voter’s mind,” he said.
“If a voter cannot distinguish between truth and a synthetic lie, the foundation of informed consent crumbles.”
The chairman said the challenge extended beyond the use of technology to administer elections, stressing the importance of protecting the information environment in which Nigerians make political decisions.
More than 103 million voters expected
Amupitan said INEC was preparing to conduct the elections for more than 103 million registered voters across 176,846 polling units in 774 local government areas.
He disclosed that the commission had completed 10 of the 14 major operational milestones outlined under the Electoral Act 2026.
According to him, INEC had procured additional Bimodal Voter Accreditation System devices and digitised candidate nominations through its INEC Candidates Nomination Portal, which had processed more than 15,000 nominations across 22 political parties.
He said AI could improve election logistics and route planning, support biometric database management, strengthen cybersecurity, facilitate voter engagement in multiple languages and help identify anomalies during results verification.
However, the commission would retain human oversight over critical electoral decisions.
“No critical electoral decision, result collation, voter accreditation, or candidate qualification will ever be fully automated or delegated to an autonomous system,” Amupitan said.
He added that statutory oversight, human accountability and judicial review would remain central to the electoral process.
Dedicated AI division established
INEC had earlier announced the establishment of a dedicated Artificial Intelligence Division within its Information and Communications Technology Directorate.
The commission also disclosed that automated AI auditing tools had been integrated into its results verification process, with human oversight forming part of its AI governance framework.
At Wednesday’s forum, Amupitan said the unit had digital monitoring tools, deepfake detection software and data analytics expertise to track emerging threats and attempts to manipulate electoral information.
He urged political parties to adopt an ethical code for AI use and called on civil society organisations to monitor algorithmic transparency and digital campaign spending.
He also asked security agencies and judicial officers to strengthen their capacity for cybercrime investigations and digital forensics.
For media organisations, the INEC chairman proposed establishing digital forensic desks to verify user-generated content before publication or broadcast.
Coalition proposed to tackle disinformation
Amupitan proposed an Electoral Information Integrity Coalition involving INEC, civil society groups, the Nigerian Guild of Editors, the Nigeria Fact-Checking Coalition, media organisations and telecommunications operators.
The proposed coalition would serve as an early-warning network for identifying AI-generated falsehoods capable of undermining the electoral process.
The chairman said the choice of Nigeria’s next leaders would ultimately reflect the decisions of voters across the country.
“On election day in 2027, it will be the thumbprint of the Nigerian citizen, guided by their own will and their own hopes, that decides our future,” he said.
“INEC’s job is to ensure that the voice of the people is heard clearly, above the noise of the machines.”
As the election approaches, the commission’s challenge will be to use technology to strengthen electoral administration while ensuring that automated systems do not replace human accountability and legally established procedures.
