WorldStage— The 2026 Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) national officers’ election is currently underway today, Saturday, July 18, 2026, amidst severe technical disruptions, legal challenges, and an early lead by the sole female presidential contender.
Early election results results monitored live on Saturday morning show a clear early frontrunner in the presidential race, Oyinkansola Badejo-Okusanya (SAN), leading the race with 4,860 votes (41.77%) out of the first 11,600 ballots counted.
If she maintains the lead, she will become the first elected female president in the NBA’s history.
Following in second place with 3,851 votes (33.10%) is Lateef Omoyemi Akangbe (SAN), while
Aare Olumuyiwa Akinboro (SAN) is trailing in third position with 2,924 votes (25.13%).
The election, which is being conducted via an electronic voting platform for roughly 82,000 eligible lawyers, was hit by major technical issues, causing 7-hour delay.
E-voting was originally scheduled to commence at 12:00 a.m. on Saturday but was suspended due to what the Electoral Committee of the NBA (ECNBA) described as a “deliberate, coordinated, and sustained cyberattack” targeting its infrastructure.
Following the intervention of technical teams, the ECNBA successfully migrated the voting system to a new secured domain, with voting officially commencing at 7:35 a.m. on Saturday and will remain open for 24 hours, concluding on Sunday morning, July 19.
The build-up to Saturday’s poll was heavily strained by internal politics and friction with federal authorities.
The NBA National Executive Council, led by outgoing president Afam Osigwe (SAN), recently rejected an attempt by the Attorney-General of the Federation, Lateef Fagbemi (SAN), who allegedly tried to issue a directive to postpone the election.
While the NBA maintained its strict independence, controversy peaked when the Department of State Services (DSS) temporarily arrested the Managing Director of the NBA’s Election Service Provider.
He was later released, though some election laptops remained in custody.
Citing structural collapses and security breaches during the opening hours of the portal, candidate Lateef Akangbe officially demanded an immediate suspension of the election.
Similarly, the regional Yoruba lawyers’ forum, Egbe Amofin Oodua, called for a postponement due to credibility concerns, which the NBA overrode to push ahead with the vote.
Final results across all national offices—including the three Vice Presidents, General Secretary, and regional representatives—are expected to be officially declared by Sunday.
