A fresh dispute has erupted over the validity of political party primaries ahead of the 2027 general elections, with the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) insisting that any primary conducted after its May 30 deadline remains invalid unless a higher court rules otherwise.
INEC National Commissioner and Chairman of the Information and Voter Education Committee, Mohammed Kudu Haruna, said political parties must continue to abide by the provisions of the Electoral Act 2026 and the commission’s election timetable pending the determination of an appeal before the Court of Appeal.
Haruna’s position comes amid conflicting court pronouncements on the powers of the electoral umpire to set timelines for party primaries and candidate nominations.
According to him, political parties that conduct primaries outside the May 30 window do so at their own risk.
“For now, any primary held outside INEC’s May 30 deadline will be invalid unless the Court of Appeal overturns the Federal High Court judgment in INEC’s appeal against the ruling that the timetable breached the Electoral Act 2026,” he said.
The controversy traces its roots to a judgment delivered by Justice Mohammed Umar of the Federal High Court in Abuja in a suit filed by the Youth Party.
In the case marked FHC/ABJ/CS/517/2026, the court ruled that INEC exceeded its powers by shortening timelines already stipulated under Section 29(1) of the Electoral Act 2026 for the submission of party membership registers and candidates’ particulars.
Justice Umar held that while INEC has regulatory responsibilities in the electoral process, it cannot lawfully alter timelines expressly provided by statute.
The judgment led to the nullification of aspects of the commission’s electoral timetable for the 2027 elections, prompting INEC to file an appeal and seek a stay of execution.
The commission has maintained that its timetable was issued in line with its constitutional responsibilities and remains binding until set aside by a superior court.
Prior to the legal challenge, INEC had fixed April 23 to May 30, 2026, as the period within which political parties were expected to conduct their primaries ahead of the 2027 polls.
However, in a separate ruling delivered less than 24 hours after INEC lodged its appeal, another Federal High Court judge, Justice James Omotosho, affirmed the commission’s authority to issue election schedules and timetables.
Delivering judgment in a suit instituted by the Social Democratic Party, Justice Omotosho held that INEC possesses constitutional powers to organise elections and determine the sequence of electoral activities.
He nevertheless cautioned that such powers must be exercised within the framework of the Electoral Act 2026.
The uncertainty surrounding the legal status of party primaries comes as the African Democratic Congress (ADC) grapples with disputes arising from its recently concluded primary elections in Kaduna State.
The party’s primary election appeals committee ordered reruns in several constituencies after reviewing petitions submitted by aggrieved aspirants.
Chairman of the committee, Dr Muhammed Fagge, said investigations revealed widespread irregularities, including procedural violations, omission of aspirants from ballot papers and inadequate evidence that voting actually took place in some areas.
As a result, the committee declared several primaries inconclusive and directed fresh elections in affected constituencies.
Among the cases cited was the Ikara/Kubau Federal Constituency, where a rerun was ordered after the committee found that a screened aspirant, Ibrahim Kubau, was excluded from the ballot.
A similar decision was taken in the Kaduna South Federal Constituency, where the committee concluded that there was insufficient proof that voting occurred across all wards.
Fagge said reruns would take place in a number of constituencies and wards, including Kaura, Soba, Kajuru, Birnin Gwari, Igabi, Kagarko, Kawo, Zaria and Chikun/Kajuru.
He said the objective was to preserve the credibility of the party’s candidate selection process and guarantee fairness to all aspirants.
The committee also ruled that any attempt to adopt candidates through consensus or affirmation in the Kaduna North Senatorial District would be invalid unless all stakeholders consented to the arrangement.
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