INEC gives parties Oct 24 deadline to challenge omitted gov’ship candidates

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has given political parties until October 24, 2026, to notify it of complaints over the omission of their governorship candidates from the final list for the 2027 general election.

The commission said the deadline was in line with Section 32(2) of the Electoral Act, 2026, which allows political parties 14 days from the publication of the list of candidates to report any perceived errors or omissions.

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

Among the prominent candidates missing from the final list are former Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Isa Ali Pantami, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) candidate in Gombe State; Ladi Adebutu, the PDP candidate in Ogun State; Aminu Abdussalam Gwarzo of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) in Kano State; and Danjuma La’ah, the NDC candidate in Kaduna State, whose omissions affect the participation of the parties concerned in the February 6, 2027 governorship elections.

The commission explained that its decision to exclude some candidates from the final governorship list followed the Supreme Court judgment delivered on September 24, 2026, in the case of INEC v. Zenith Labour Party, Appeal No. SC/CV/495/2026.

“The Supreme Court, in the aforementioned judgement, held that the provisions of Section 77(5)-(7) of the Electoral Act, 2026 are constitutional and mandatory for all political parties.

“In particular, the Court upheld the constitutionality of Item No. 2 of INEC’s Timetable and Schedule of Activities, which mandated political parties to submit their membership registers between 21st April and 10th May, 2026.

“Furthermore, the Court held that failure to comply with the provisions of Section 77(5)-(7), renders the defaulting political parties ineligible to sponsor any candidate for the election,” INEC stated.

The commission said the apex court also upheld Item 2 of its timetable and schedule of activities for the 2027 general election, which required political parties to submit their membership registers between April 21 and May 10, 2026.

“Meanwhile, the final list of Presidential and National Assembly candidates had already been published on 12th September, 2026, thirteen days before the Supreme Court delivered its judgement.

“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,” the statement read.