Nigerians in London surround INEC chairman's car in protest, demand his resignation

• Nigerians confronted INEC chairman Joash Amupitan outside Chatham House in London, demanding his resignation.

• Protesters questioned the credibility of the preliminary voters' register and alleged irregularities in the registration process.

• Amupitan defended INEC's preparations for the 2027 elections during his Chatham House appearance.

Nigerians in the diaspora surrounded the vehicle of the Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Prof. Joash Amupitan, outside Chatham House in London and demanded his resignation over alleged irregularities in the preliminary voters' register.

The confrontation happened on Thursday, November 12, 2026, as Amupitan left a panel discussion titled "Nigeria's 2027 Elections: Democratic Trajectory and Regional Stability Beyond the Ballot." The protest was planned ahead of his appearance.

Videos shared on social media showed protesters waving placards, filming the encounter and shouting at the black vehicle carrying him. One placard read, "Amupitan, no more election fraud." 

A voice is heard saying, "You can't leave here! Come down to address us," while security operatives tried to calm the crowd. Some protesters described INEC as a "criminal organisation." Amupitan stayed in the vehicle and made no audible response.

The protesters, reportedly Nigerian diaspora activists, pointed to alleged duplicate registrations, suspected AI-generated photographs and doubtful polling units in the preliminary voters' register. Some accused INEC of favouring the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).

INEC has admitted irregularities and opened investigations. On November 9, Amupitan said the commission had removed 1,608,660 invalid registrations from the 2025 and 2026 continuous voter registration exercises. INEC has said some of the questionable entries circulating online date back to 2011, not just the latest exercise.

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At the Chatham House session, Amupitan said glitches in the transmission of results during the 2023 elections had eroded public trust in the commission. 

He said measures had been introduced to prevent inaccurate polling unit results from appearing on the INEC Result Viewing Portal (IReV) in 2027. He said he would accept no appointment after his tenure, because the role is based on trust.

He also said INEC is contending with more than 300 pending court cases, with elections about 66 days away, and that the commission has begun procuring sensitive election materials.

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Amupitan was sworn in as INEC chairman in October 2025 and is the first holder of the office from Kogi State.

INEC had not commented on the protest itself at the time of filing.