The Senate has confirmed Professor Joash Amupitan (SAN) as the new Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission.
His confirmation followed approval by the National Council of State and a screening session at the Senate on Thursday.
Amupitan, who serves as Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Administration) at the University of Jos, was confirmed after answering questions from lawmakers during plenary presided over by Senate President Godswill Akpabio.
Following his confirmation, he pledged to collaborate with relevant agencies, including the National Identity Management Commission, to improve the nation’s electoral process.
The National Council of State had earlier, on October 9, approved his nomination as INEC Chairman, according to a statement issued by Bayo Onanuga, Special Adviser to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu on Information and Strategy.
Amupitan, a law professor from Kogi State, replaces Professor Mahmood Yakubu, who led INEC from 2015 to October 2025.
The council members unanimously endorsed Amupitan’s nomination before it was forwarded to the Senate for screening and confirmation.
“The National Council of State has approved the nomination of Professor Joash Ojo Amupitan (SAN) from the North-Central as the new Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC),” the statement read.
Before his appointment, May Agbamuche-Mbu had been serving as Acting INEC Chairman following Yakubu’s exit. She currently heads INEC’s Legal Services, Clearance, and Complaints Committee.
Amupitan, 58, hails from Ayetoro Gbede in Ijumu Local Government Area of Kogi State. A Professor of Law at the University of Jos, he specialises in Company Law, Law of Evidence, Corporate Governance, and Privatisation Law.
He earned his LLM in 1993 and PhD in 2007 from the University of Jos and became a Senior Advocate of Nigeria in 2014.
Amupitan has held several leadership roles, including Dean of the Faculty of Law and Chairman of the Committee of Deans and Directors at UNIJOS. He also serves as Pro-Chancellor and Chairman of the Governing Council of Joseph Ayo Babalola University in Osun State.
He is married with four children.
