EU denies rejecting INEC invitation to observe Nigeria’s general elections

The European Union (EU) has denied rumors that it rejected an invitation from Nigeria's Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to observe its 2027 general election. The EU released a statement on Monday clarifying that it had received a formal invitation from INEC on April 17, 2026, to deploy observers. Instead of declining, the EU accepted the invitation and will deploy an Electoral Expert Mission (EEM) to the country.

The EEM will consist of between two and four independent experts who will submit a final report after the election, which will be shared with the Nigerian government. The EU stated that the two reasons cited in reports for their decision to deploy an EEM rather than a larger electoral observation mission are inaccurate and speculative.

The delegation emphasized that the decision to send an EEM does not signal a withdrawal of support for democratic governance or Nigeria's electoral process and does not affect the implementation of its EU-funded Support to Democratic Governance in Nigeria project.