The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has issued a public clarification explaining why some candidates are missing from the final list for the 2027 governorship election, pointing to a Supreme Court ruling as the basis for their exclusion. The Commission also announced a new window for political parties to formally challenge the omissions.
Supreme Court Ruling Behind Exclusions
In a press statement signed by National Commissioner and Chairman of the Information and Voter Education Committee, Mohammed Kudu Haruna, on October 13, 2026, INEC said the omissions followed directly from a judgment delivered by the Supreme Court on September 24, 2026, in the case INEC v. Zenith Labour Party (Appeal No. SC/CV/495/2026).
The case originated from an earlier Court of Appeal ruling that had struck down sections 77(5) to 77(7) of the Electoral Act, 2026. Those provisions require political parties to submit their membership registers as a condition for conducting valid primaries. INEC appealed that decision, and the Supreme Court sided with the Commission, upholding the provisions as both constitutional and binding on all political parties.
The court also affirmed the validity of Item 2 of INEC's Timetable and Schedule of Activities, which set the window for parties to submit their membership registers between April 21 and May 10, 2026. Any party that failed to comply within that period, the court held, loses the right to field candidates for the election.
How INEC Applied the Ruling
Acting under Section 287(1) of the 1999 Constitution, which requires all authorities and persons to comply with decisions of the Supreme Court, INEC applied the judgement when compiling the final governorship candidate list and dropped all parties that did not meet the membership register requirement.
The Commission noted that the final list of Presidential and National Assembly candidates had already been published on September 12, 2026, thirteen days before the Supreme Court's ruling, which is why those lists were not affected by the same decision.
Deadline for Challenges
Under Section 32(2) of the Electoral Act, 2026, any political party that believes its candidate was wrongly excluded has 14 days from the date the governorship list was published to formally challenge the omission with the Commission. That deadline falls on October 24, 2026.
INEC said it remains committed to transparency and the rule of law in managing the electoral process. The Commission has urged affected parties to take advantage of the window before the deadline expires.
