From David Onuoja, Abuja
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), has applied the Supreme Court judgment in INEC v. Zenith Labour Party, Appeal No. SC/CV/495/2026 delivered on September 24, 2026, and therefore, excluded Political Parties that failed to comply with the provisions of the Electoral Act 2026 in the final list of candidates for the governorship election.
In a statement on Monday by the National Commissioner and Chairman, Information and Voter Education Committee, Mohammed Kudu Haruna, INEC said the Supreme Court upheld the constitutionality of Section 77(5)-(7) of the Electoral Act 2026 which requires submission of membership registers as a prerequisite for valid party primaries, and validated Item 2 of its Timetable which mandated parties to submit registers between April 21 and May 10, 2026.
The apex court during its judgement recently, held that failure of political parties to comply as stated renders the defaulting parties ineligible to sponsor any candidate for the 2027 elections.
According to the statement, INEC said it relied on Section 287(1) of the Constitution while finalising the governorship candidates list. And however noted that the final list of Presidential and National Assembly candidates had already been published on September 12, thirteen days before the judgment.
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It said under Section 32(2) of the Electoral Act 2026, parties that believe their candidates were wrongly excluded have 14 days from publication to notify the Commission, with the deadline set for October 24, 2026, while assuring the public of its commitment to transparency and the rule of law.
