The Rivers State Independent Electoral Commission (RSIEC) has announced August 30 as the new date for the 2025 local government elections in the state.
The election, earlier scheduled for August 9, has now been rescheduled for August 30, according to the state electoral body, citing the state of emergency rule in the state as the main reason for the change.
Crystal Express Newspaper recalled that the Supreme Court had, in February 2025, annulled the council election conducted in the 23 local government areas of the state in 2024 and sacked all elected officials.
The chairman of RSIEC, Mr Michael Odey, who announced the new date during a meeting with stakeholders at the RSIEC headquarters in Port Harcourt, said the electoral body had to adjust the timetable due to the current realities in the state.
He also used the meeting to unveil the revised timetable and guidelines for the upcoming polls.
Odey explained that the decision to postpone the election was necessitated by the state of emergency declared in the state, which disrupted earlier plans.
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He noted that given the new realities, the RISIEC needed to adjust the electoral calendar.
The revised timetable includes new dates for party primaries, candidate screening, campaign periods, and the main council election.
Stakeholders, including party leaders, electoral observers and media representatives, were present at the unveiling to review and discuss the updated guidelines.
According to the revised guidelines, participating political parties are expected to conduct their primaries between July 31 and August 3, 2025, and submit the names of their candidates on August 3 and August 4, 2025.
The electoral body also said that the recruitment of ad hoc staff for the election would be held on Saturday, August 16, 2025, while the list of candidates would be displayed on Wednesday, August 20, 2025.
