Verbatim text
(1) A candidate for an election to the office of President shall be
deemed to have been duly elected, where, there being only two
candidates for the election -
(a) he has the majority of votes cast at the election; and
(b) he has not less than one-quarter of the votes cast at the
election in each of at least two-thirds of all the States in the
Federation and the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja.
The Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria Updated with the First, Second, Third, Fourth and Fifth Alterations(2) A candidate for an election to the office of President shall be
deemed to have been duly elected where, there being more than
two candidates for the election-
(a) he has the highest number of votes cast at the election; and
(b) he has not less than one-quarter of the votes cast at the
election each of at least two-thirds of all the States in the
Federation and the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja.
(3) In a default of a candidate duly elected in accordance with
subsection (2) of this section, there shall be a second election in
accordance with subsection (4) of this section at which the only
candidate shall be -
(a) the candidate who scored the highest number of votes at any
election held in accordance with the said subsection (2) of this
section; and
(b) one among the remaining candidates who has a majority of
votes in the highest number of States, so however that where
there are more than one candidate with majority of votes in the
highest number of States, the candidate among them with the
highest total of votes cast at the election shall be the second
candidate for the election.
(4) In default of a candidate duly elected under the foregoing
subsections, the Independent National Electoral Commission shall
within twenty-one days of the result of the election held under
the said subsections, arrange for an election between the two
candidates and a candidate at such election shall be deemed to
have been duly elected to the office of President if -
(a) he has a majority of votes cast at the election; and
(b) he has not less than one-quarter of the votes cast at the
election in each of at least two-thirds of all the States in the
Federation and the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja.
(5) In default of a candidate duly elected under subsection (4) of
this section, the Independent National Electoral Commission shall,
within twenty-one days of the result of the election held under the [Section 134 (5) is
altered by Constitution
of the Federal Republic
of Nigeria, 1999 (Fourth
Alteration No.9) Act
2017][Section 134 (4) is
altered by Constitution
of the Federal Republic
of Nigeria, 1999 (Fourth
Alteration No.9) Act
2017]
The Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria Updated with the First, Second, Third, Fourth and Fifth Alterationsaforesaid subsection (4), arrange for another election between the
two candidates to which the subsection relates and a candidate
at such election shall be deemed to have been duly elected to
the office of President if he has a majority of the votes cast at the
election.
What this means
- The index files this text under article 134 of the Constitution of Nigeria.
- The index files it under the chapter heading “CHAPTER V — The Legislature”.
- The row is titled “Election: two or more Presidential candidates”.
- The passage runs to about 528 words.
No rights vocabulary from our fixed word list appears in this passage, so no plain-language reading is offered for it.
This is a mechanical reading aid generated from the text above by matching words in it. It is not legal advice, not a lawyer’s interpretation, and not a substitute for the provision itself.
How to cite this
Constitution of Nigeria, article 134 (“Election: two or more Presidential candidates”), Portable Lawyer, https://www.portablelawyer.app/provision/1faf3ce9-6f60-4177-81f7-7acf7de9e0bf (accessed 25 October 2026).
Canonical URL: https://www.portablelawyer.app/provision/1faf3ce9-6f60-4177-81f7-7acf7de9e0bf
Accessed 25 October 2026.
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