INEC gives parties October 24 to protest omitted candidates

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has granted political parties whose candidates were omitted from the final 2027 governorship ballot a 14-day window, ending October 24, to officially notify the commission of any perceived errors.

The directive came after some political party leaders and actors raised an alarm over the exclusion of key prominent politicians from the final registry, including the Peoples Democratic Party’s governorship candidates in Ogun and Gombe states, Oladipupo Adebutu and Isa Ali Pantami. Other affected politicians include the Nigeria Democratic Congress candidate in Kano State, Aminu Gwarzo, and the African Democratic Congress deputy governorship candidate in Jigawa State, Aminu Ringim.

INEC National Commissioner and Chairman of the Information and Voter Education Committee, Mohammed Haruna, on Tuesday explained that the omissions were constitutional. He stated that the commission applied the September 24 Supreme Court judgment (Appeal No. SC/CV/495/2026), which mandated the exclusion of political parties that failed to submit their membership registers to INEC within the stipulated timeframe before conducting primaries.

“Under Section 32(2) of the Electoral Act, 2026, political parties that believe their candidates were wrongly left off the list have 14 days from the date of publication to notify the commission. The deadline is 24th October, 2026,” Haruna added.

INEC added that the Supreme Court held that failure to comply with Sections 77(5)-(7) of the Electoral Act renders defaulting political parties ineligible to sponsor candidates for the election.

The commission, however, clarified that the earlier published lists for presidential and National Assembly candidates remain unaffected as they were released before the apex court delivered its judgment.