By Samuel Olusegun Precious
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has given political parties whose candidates were omitted from the final list for the 2027 governorship elections until October 24, 2026 to challenge the decision.
INEC disclosed this in a statement issued on Tuesday evening by its National Commissioner and Chairman of Information and Voter Education Committee, Mohammed Kudu Haruna.
The commission said the 14-day window is provided under Section 32(2) of the Electoral Act, 2026, which allows political parties to formally notify it if they believe their candidates were wrongly excluded.
The clarification comes amid protests over the omission of several prominent politicians, including the Peoples Democratic Party’s governorship candidates in Gombe and Ogun States, Isa Ali Pantami and Oladipupo Adebutu.
Also omitted was the Nigeria Democratic Congress governorship candidate in Kano State, Aminu Gwarzo, while the African Democratic Congress in Jigawa State protested the exclusion of its endorsed deputy governorship candidate, Aminu Ringim, and several other candidates.
INEC explained that the omissions were based on the Supreme Court judgment delivered on September 24, 2026, in INEC v. Zenith Labour Party, Appeal No. SC/CV/495/2026.According to the commission, the apex court upheld the constitutionality of Sections 77(5)-(7) of the Electoral Act, 2026, which makes submission of membership registers by political parties mandatory, and Item 2 of INEC’s timetable requiring parties to submit their registers between April 21 and May 10, 2026.
The court held that political parties that failed to comply with the statutory requirements were ineligible to sponsor candidates for the elections, a principle INEC said it applied in finalising the list.Affected parties are now expected to submit their complaints with supporting affidavits before the October 24 deadline expires.
