The second phase of updating the Permanent Voter Register will be conducted concurrently with the public display of the Preliminary Voters’ Register from May 1 to July 4, 2025, the Independent National Electoral Commission has announced.
Speaking in Dodoma on April 14, 2025, the Chairperson of the Commission, Appellate Court Judge Jacobs Mwambegele, said the exercise will be carried out in three phases.
The first will cover 15 regions, the second will include 16 regions, and the third will focus on prison centers and training institutions across the country.
Regions in the first round include Geita, Kagera, Mara, Shinyanga, Mwanza, Simiyu, Rukwa, Tabora, Katavi, Kigoma, Iringa, Ruvuma, Mbeya, Njombe, and Songwe. Voter registration and updates in these areas will take place from May 1 to May 7, 2025.
The second round, scheduled for May 16 to 22, 2025, will take place in Arusha, Manyara, Kilimanjaro, Tanga, Morogoro, Coast Region, Singida, Dodoma, Dar es Salaam, Lindi, Mtwara, Urban West, North Unguja, South Unguja, North Pemba, and South Pemba.
“The third and final round will involve 130 registration centers in mainland prisons and 10 centers in training institutions across Zanzibar. This will take place simultaneously from June 28 to July 4, 2025,” said Judge Mwambegele.
He further explained that this phase of the voter register update will be conducted at the ward level on the mainland and at the constituency level in Zanzibar.
A total of 7,869 registration centers will be involved 7,659 in mainland Tanzania and 210 in Zanzibar.
“We expect to register 1,396,609 new voters, update the information of 1,092,383 existing voters, and remove 148,624 voters who are no longer eligible to remain in the register,” Judge Mwambegele said.
He emphasized that the exercise is being carried out in accordance with Section 16(5) of the Presidential, Parliamentary, and Councillors Election Act No. 1 of 2024, which mandates the Commission to update the Permanent Voter Register twice: once after the general election and once before candidate nominations for the next general election.
The update will involve registering new voters who are Tanzanian citizens aged 18 or above, including those who will reach that age by the 2025 general election.
It will also include reissuing voter cards to those who have lost or damaged theirs, and allowing registered voters to correct their personal details, such as names or other information.
Additionally, the exercise will facilitate the transfer of voter information for individuals who have relocated from their original registration areas, and the removal of individuals who are no longer eligible such as the deceased.
Judge Mwambegele also noted that, under Section 11(1) and (2) of the same Act, the Commission is required to prepare and publicly display the Preliminary Voters’ Register.
“The objective of the public display is to allow citizens to verify, correct, or raise objections against the details of voters listed in the register who do not meet the eligibility criteria,” he said.
The Preliminary Voters’ Register will be displayed at all centers that were used during the first phase of the update exercise. This process will run concurrently with the second phase of the voter register update.
The first phase of updating the Permanent Voter Register was conducted between July 20, 2024, and March 25, 2025.