Updated 2027 Election Lists: INEC Approves 41 Petitions, Rejects 28

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has approved 41 of the 69 petitions submitted over the omission of candidates from the final list of governorship candidates for the 2027 general elections.

The commission also upheld 25 of the 61 petitions concerning candidates for State Houses of Assembly.

Mohammed Kudu Haruna, Chairman of INEC’s Information and Voter Education Committee, disclosed the decisions in a statement issued on Thursday. He said the petitions followed the publication of the final lists of governorship and State Assembly candidates on October 10, 2026.

According to Haruna, the complaints covered the omission of political parties and their candidates, the inclusion of individuals whose names were absent from party membership registers, and cases involving alleged multiple nominations.

He explained that the commission examined the complaints alongside relevant records and applicable legal provisions. Those found to have merit resulted in the approval of affected candidates and political parties, while petitions that failed to meet the required conditions were rejected.

The review also led to the removal of some candidates whose names had been wrongly included in the final lists after INEC confirmed that they were not listed in the membership registers submitted by their parties. Other nominations were removed because they did not satisfy the relevant legal requirements.

Haruna added that decisions concerning State Assembly candidates were based on specific complaints received by the commission and assessed under its established criteria.

For the governorship elections, INEC received 69 petitions from 12 political parties across 26 states. It approved 41 and rejected the remaining 28.

In the case of the State Houses of Assembly, 61 petitions were submitted by 11 political parties across 11 states. Of these, 25 were upheld, while 36 were dismissed.

The commission said the names of affected candidates, political parties and states would be reflected in an updated list to be published on its website. It also reaffirmed its commitment to transparency and the credibility of the electoral process.

The petitions involved several prominent aspirants whose names were initially missing from the published lists. They included former Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Professor Isa Ali Pantami; Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) governorship candidate in Kano State, Abdulsalam Gwarzo; and the party’s candidate in Kaduna State, Senator Danjuma Laah.

Others were Social Democratic Party (SDP) governorship nominee in Benue State, Sebastine Hon, and Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governorship candidate in Ogun State, Ladi Adebutu.

INEC had earlier defended the exclusion of some candidates, citing a Supreme Court judgment delivered on September 24, 2026, in the case of INEC v. Zenith Labour Party, Appeal No. SC/CV/495/2026.

In a statement issued on October 13 and signed by Haruna, the commission said its decision was based on the court’s interpretation of Section 77(5)–(7) of the Electoral Act 2026. The provisions require political parties to submit their membership registers as a condition for conducting valid primaries.

According to INEC, the Supreme Court affirmed that the requirements were constitutional and mandatory, meaning parties that failed to comply could not validly sponsor candidates.

The commission also explained that the final lists of presidential and National Assembly candidates had been published on September 12, 2026, before the Supreme Court delivered its judgment. It noted that Section 32(2) of the Electoral Act 2026 allows political parties that believe their candidates were wrongly excluded to notify the commission within 14 days of publication, with October 24 set as the deadline.

On October 10, 2026, INEC published the final lists containing 936 governorship and deputy governorship candidates and 9,692 State House of Assembly candidates nominated by 21 political parties for the 2027 general elections.

However, the lists initially excluded three governorship candidates from the PDP and NDC in Ogun, Gombe and Kano states. They were Ladi Adebutu of the PDP in Ogun, Professor Isa Ali Ibrahim Pantami of the PDP in Gombe, and Aminu Abdussalam Gwarzo of the NDC in Kano.