National Unity Platform accuses Electoral Commission of failing to release voters register as law requires
In a letter dated 6 January 2026 and addressed to the Chairperson of the Electoral Commission, NUP Secretary General David Lewis Rubongoya said the party was concerned that, with polling day set for 15 January 2026, the Commission had not yet supplied the register as required by law.
The National Unity Platform (NUP) has formally demanded that the Electoral Commission immediately provides it with an updated paper copy of the National Voters Register, citing what it describes as a failure by the Commission to comply with the law ahead of the 2026 general elections.
In a letter dated 6 January 2026 and addressed to the Chairperson of the Electoral Commission, NUP Secretary General David Lewis Rubongoya said the party was concerned that, with polling day set for 15 January 2026, the Commission had not yet supplied the register as required by law.
The party referred to earlier correspondence with the Commission, including a letter dated 11 December 2025 regarding statutory obligations under the Presidential Elections Act, Cap. 179, and another dated 31 December 2025 protesting alleged duplication of tens of thousands of voters in the National Voters Register.
According to NUP, Section 19 of the Electoral Commission Act, Cap. 176, obliges the Commission to transmit to political parties participating in elections an updated paper copy of the Voters Register, complete with voter photographs, at least 14 days before polling day.
“The Commission gazetted 15th January 2026 as polling day, yet with fewer than nine days remaining, it has neither transmitted a paper copy of the updated register to NUP nor offered any lawful justification for this failure,” the letter states.
NUP noted that it is participating fully in the 2026 general elections and has sponsored thousands of candidates at various levels, including the presidential race. The party warned that failure to provide the voters register undermines transparency and the integrity of the electoral process.
In its demand, NUP called on the Electoral Commission to immediately provide a clean and updated paper copy of the National Voters Register and to comply with all other outstanding statutory obligations.
By press time, the Electoral Commission had not publicly responded to the letter.
