The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) rejected 64 petitions on Thursday, including that of the Peoples Democratic Party governorship candidate in Ogun State, Ladi Adebutu, and that of the Nigeria Democratic Congress candidate in Kano State, Aminu Gwarzo.
Nevertheless, the electoral commission cleared the candidacy of former Minister of Communications and Digital Economy and Gombe State PDP governorship candidate Isa Ali Pantami for the 2027 election.
An INEC source, who spoke on Thursday night on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to comment on the matter, said the candidacies of Adebutu and Gwarzo remained uncertain after complaints over the final lists of candidates for the 2027 governorship and State House of Assembly elections were reviewed.
He confirmed that Pantami had been cleared to run in Gombe State.
Speaking about Adebutu, the source said his name was left off the list because his party had not included it in the list of candidates submitted to INEC.
“His petition was rejected because his name was not included in the list of candidates originally submitted to INEC by the PDP,” the source said.
Regarding Gwarzo, he said the deputy governor would have been on the list if not for an ex parte order from the Federal High Court that stopped INEC from publishing his name.
He added that Gwarzo’s clearance was still dependent on the outcome of the litigation concerning his candidacy.
“He would have scaled through, but unfortunately, there was an ex parte order from the Federal High Court barring INEC from publishing his name. That was the reason he was not cleared,” the source added.
The source stated that INEC would release the revised list of candidates for the elections by Friday (today). ↻
On October 10, 2026, INEC had posted the names of presidential, National Assembly, governorship, and state House of Assembly candidates on its website.
As a result of this development, the names of Adebutu, Pantami, Gwarzo, and others were absent.
A statement released on Thursday night and signed by Mohammed Haruna, Chairman of INEC’s Information and Voter Education Committee, said the electoral commission upheld 66 petitions contesting the final lists of governorship and state Houses of Assembly candidates for the 2027 general elections, while rejecting 64 others.
The petitions came after the final lists of candidates were published on October 10, 2026, raising complaints about the omission of political parties, the inclusion of candidates whose names did not appear in their parties’ membership registers, and alleged multiple nominations.
He noted that the commission examined the complaints, the relevant records, and the applicable legal provisions before arriving at its decisions.
Haruna said, “Following a review of the complaints, relevant records, and applicable legal provisions, the commission found merit in some representations and approved the inclusion of affected candidates and their political parties, while complaints found to be without merit were declined.”
He also stated that the commission had removed some candidates whose names were wrongfully published after verifying that they were not listed in the membership registers submitted by their political parties.
“The commission also approved the removal of candidates whose nominations were found to be inconsistent with the applicable legal requirements,” the statement said.
According to INEC, 69 petitions were received from 12 political parties across 26 states regarding the governorship election. Out of these, 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. Twenty-five petitions were upheld, while 36 were unsuccessful.
The commission clarified that its decisions on state House of Assembly candidates were based on specific complaints received and determined in accordance with the law and its established criteria.
INEC stated that the affected candidates, political parties, and states would be reflected in an updated list to be published on its website.
The commission reaffirmed its commitment to transparency and electoral credibility while assuring Nigerians that complaints were considered based on relevant records and applicable legal provisions.
The latest development follows an earlier statement issued by the commission on October 13, 2026, concerning complaints arising from the publication of the final lists of governorship and State Houses of Assembly candidates.
INEC had attributed the omissions to alleged non-compliance with provisions of the Electoral Act, 2026, requiring parties to submit their membership registers.
The commission said its position followed a September 24, 2026, Supreme Court judgment affirming the constitutionality of Section 77(5) to (7) of the Electoral Act, which makes the submission of membership registers mandatory.
