The Peoples Democratic Party and the Nigeria Democratic Congress have threatened to take legal action against the Independent National Electoral Commission if it fails to address the exclusion of their governorship candidates from the list for the 2027 elections.
The parties said they had contacted the electoral commission over the omissions but were yet to receive satisfactory responses, adding that they would consider legal options if the matter remained unresolved by October 24, 2026.
Speaking in separate interviews, PDP National Publicity Secretary Mohammed Jungudo and his NDC counterpart, Osa Director, said their parties were still hopeful that INEC would review the situation before the deadline for complaints.
The dispute followed INEC’s publication of the final list of candidates for the February 6, 2027 governorship elections on October 10. The list, signed by the commission’s Secretary, Rose Oriaran-Anthony, contained 13 candidates, while several prominent politicians were left out.
Among those omitted was former Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Professor Isa Pantami, who is the PDP’s governorship candidate in Gombe State. The party’s candidate in Ogun State, Oladipupo Adebutu, was also excluded.
Other affected politicians included Aminu Gwarzo, the New Democratic Congress governorship candidate in Kano State; former Senator Danjuma Tella La’ah in Kaduna State; and the Social Democratic Party candidate in Benue State, Professor Sebastine Hon, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria.
In a statement issued on October 13, INEC explained that some candidates were excluded because their political parties had failed to submit their membership registers as required by law.
The commission cited Section 32(2) of the Electoral Act, 2026, stating that political parties that believed their candidates had been wrongly omitted had 14 days from the publication of the list to notify it of the issue. The deadline was fixed for October 24, 2026.
Jungudo said the PDP leadership and the affected candidates’ legal team had been engaging INEC but had yet to record progress.
“We are still engaging them, but there is a tendency, a likelihood, that we may end up in litigation. As of last week Friday, there was no development. There is nothing forthcoming. There is no headway and no development,” he said.
The PDP spokesman added that the party would allow the 14-day period provided by law to run its course before deciding on its next move.
“However, if, at the end of the day, we are still within the window provided by the guidelines, we will wait and exhaust the 14 days to see what comes out of it. If nothing comes out of it, then we will have no option other than to explore legal remedies,” Jungudo said.
He also disclosed that Pantami’s lawyers had written to the commission, while expressing hope that the matter would be resolved before the deadline.
“As you can see, Pantami’s lawyers have already written to INEC. We are still hopeful that the 14-day window provided by law will bring us something positive. But if nothing comes out of it, we will explore legal remedies,” he added.
The NDC publicity secretary, said his party had also formally written to INEC and received acknowledgement of its letters but had yet to receive a response addressing the omissions.
“We have written to the commission, and they have received and acknowledged our letters. We have communicated with them as required by law, but, as of now, they are yet to respond to our letters,” he said.
He maintained that the party would pursue other lawful options if the commission failed to resolve the matter before October 24.
“However, there is still time, as the 14-day window expires on October 24. We are hopeful that the commission will respond before then,” Director said.
“But if it fails to address the omission of our candidates from the list, we will, as a law-abiding party, take other lawful steps to ensure that the right thing is done,” he added.
The dispute places the affected parties under pressure to secure a resolution within the period set by INEC, as they consider their options ahead of the 2027 governorship elections.
