The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has revised its list of candidates for the 2027 governorship and State Houses of Assembly elections, removing some previously published names while approving the inclusion of others following a review of complaints submitted by political parties.
The commission said the decision followed petitions challenging the exclusion of some candidates, the inclusion of aspirants whose names were missing from their parties’ membership registers, and alleged cases of multiple nominations.
INEC had initially published the final lists of candidates on October 10, 2026, but the exercise generated controversy after several political parties complained about the omission and inclusion of certain aspirants.
Among those whose exclusion had attracted attention were former Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Isa Ali Pantami, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governorship candidate in Gombe State; Ladi Adebutu, the PDP candidate in Ogun State; and Abdulsalam Gwarzo, the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) governorship candidate in Kano State.
In explaining its decision, the electoral commission cited the September 24, 2026, Supreme Court judgment affirming the constitutionality of Section 77(5)-(7) of the Electoral Act, 2026, which makes the submission of membership registers a mandatory requirement for political parties.
The commission also referenced Section 287(1) of the 1999 Constitution, as amended, which requires authorities to comply with decisions of superior courts.
In a statement issued by Mohammed Haruna, Chairman of INEC’s Information and Voter Education Committee, the commission said it had carefully considered the complaints received from political parties.
According to INEC, some petitions were upheld, leading to the inclusion of affected candidates, while others were rejected for lacking merit.
The commission also approved the removal of candidates whose nominations were found to violate applicable legal requirements, particularly those whose names were not contained in the membership registers submitted by their political parties.
Providing details of the petitions, INEC disclosed that it received 69 complaints from 12 political parties across 26 states concerning the governorship elections.
Of the 69 petitions, 41 were successful, while 28 were rejected.
For the State Houses of Assembly elections, the commission received 61 petitions from 11 political parties across 11 states. Of these, 25 were upheld, while 36 were rejected.
INEC said an updated list containing the affected candidates, political parties and states would be published on its official website.
The commission reaffirmed its commitment to transparency, fairness and the credibility of the electoral process as preparations continue for the 2027 general elections.
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