INEC explains exclusion of 2027 governorship candidates, sets October 24 deadline for complaints

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has explained why some political parties were excluded from the final list of candidates for the 2027 governorship elections, citing a Supreme Court judgment that upheld mandatory requirements for submitting party membership registers.

The commission has given affected political parties until October 24, 2026, to notify it of any omissions they consider wrongful.

INEC disclosed this in a statement issued on Tuesday, October 13, by its National Commissioner and Chairman of the Information and Voter Education Committee, Mohammed Kudu Haruna.

The commission said its decision followed the Supreme Court judgment in INEC v. Zenith Labour Party (Appeal No. SC/CV/495/2026), delivered on September 24, 2026.

According to INEC, the apex court overturned an earlier Court of Appeal judgment that had invalidated Sections 77(5)–(7) of the Electoral Act 2026, which require political parties to submit their membership registers as a condition for conducting valid primaries.

The Supreme Court upheld the constitutionality of the provisions, describing them as mandatory requirements that political parties must satisfy to qualify to nominate candidates for elections.

The court also upheld Item 2 of INEC’s Timetable and Schedule of Activities, which stipulated that political parties submit their membership registers between April 21 and May 10, 2026.

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INEC explained that the Supreme Court ruled that political parties that failed to comply with the requirement were ineligible to sponsor candidates.

Consequently, the commission said it applied the judgment when preparing the final list of governorship candidates, excluding parties that had not met the statutory requirement.

The electoral body cited Section 287(1) of the 1999 Constitution, as amended, which requires authorities to give effect to decisions of the Supreme Court.

INEC said the development arose from the need to comply with the apex court’s ruling rather than disregard the legal requirements governing party primaries and candidate nominations.

The commission further noted that the final lists of candidates for the presidential and National Assembly elections had already been published on September 12, 2026, 13 days before the Supreme Court delivered its judgment.

It explained that the publication of those lists preceded the apex court’s decision on the disputed provisions of the Electoral Act 2026.

Under Section 32(2) of the Electoral Act 2026, political parties that believe their candidates were wrongly omitted from the published list are entitled to notify INEC of the alleged omissions within 14 days of publication.

The commission said the deadline for submitting such complaints is October 24, 2026.

INEC urged affected political parties to follow the prescribed procedure within the stipulated period, allowing the commission to consider complaints in line with the law.

The development comes amid continuing legal and political debates over INEC’s powers, election timetables and the statutory conditions political parties must satisfy before sponsoring candidates.

The commission’s position reinforces the importance of compliance with electoral laws, particularly requirements governing party membership registers, primaries and candidate nominations ahead of the 2027 general elections.