The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has announced that it will review the exclusion of former Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Isa Pantami; Ladi Adebutu; and other governorship candidates omitted from its final list for the February 6, 2027, governorship elections.
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The commission is expected to deliberate on the matter at its meeting scheduled for Thursday, October 29, 2026, following complaints, protests and legal challenges by affected candidates and their political parties.
INEC National Commissioner Mohammed Haruna disclosed this on Wednesday while responding to questions about the fate of the affected politicians.
“As for the final list of candidates, we will meet on it at our next commission meeting on Thursday,” Haruna said.
Pantami is contesting the Gombe State governorship election, while Adebutu is seeking the governorship seat in Ogun State, both on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
Their names were among those omitted from the final list of candidates published by INEC on October 10, 2026.
Other affected candidates include Aminu Gwarzo, the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) governorship candidate in Kano State, and Danjuma Laah, the party’s candidate in Kaduna State.
INEC also excluded the governorship candidates of the Social Democratic Party (SDP), New Nigeria People’s Party (NNPP), Action Alliance (AA) and Accord Party in Bauchi State.
The affected candidates in Bauchi are Abdullahi Yakubu of the SDP, Musa Zubairu of the NNPP, Ahmed Shuaibu of Action Alliance and Mohammed Aminu of Accord.
The exclusions have generated protests and legal moves by the affected politicians and their parties, who insist that they complied with the requirements for nominating candidates.
INEC, however, attributed the omissions to the failure of the affected political parties to submit their membership registers within the period stipulated by law.
The commission based its decision on the Supreme Court judgment delivered on September 24, 2026, which upheld the constitutionality of Sections 77(5), 77(6) and 77(7) of the Electoral Act, 2026.
The provisions require political parties to submit their membership registers to INEC before conducting valid primaries, congresses and conventions.
According to INEC, the Supreme Court also affirmed the legality of its timetable requiring political parties to submit their membership registers between April 21 and May 10, 2026.
“In particular, the court upheld the constitutionality of Item No. 2 of INEC’s Timetable and Schedule of Activities, which mandated political parties to submit their membership registers between 21st April and 10th May, 2026,” the commission stated.
INEC maintained that political parties that failed to comply with the requirement were ineligible to sponsor candidates in the elections.
The commission also relied on Section 287(1) of the 1999 Constitution, as amended, which requires relevant authorities to enforce decisions of competent courts.
It explained that the constitutional provision obligated it to apply the Supreme Court judgment when preparing the final list of governorship candidates.
However, the affected political parties have challenged the commission’s interpretation and application of the judgment, insisting that their candidates were validly nominated.
The PDP approached INEC over the exclusion of Pantami and Adebutu, maintaining that the party had complied with the applicable legal requirements.
The party’s National Organising Secretary, Umar Bature, also deposed to an affidavit at the Federal High Court Registry in Abuja on October 15, challenging the omissions.
PDP National Publicity Secretary Mohammed Jungudo disclosed that the party leadership and the legal teams representing the affected candidates were engaging INEC to resolve the matter.
He added that the party could pursue further legal action if the commission failed to address its complaints.
In Ogun State, the PDP leadership expressed confidence that Adebutu’s name would be restored to the list of candidates.
The state chairman of the party, Abayomi Tella, described Adebutu’s exclusion as an error, insisting that the party had satisfied all statutory requirements for his nomination.
“The party views the omission as an error by INEC; we are very confident and optimistic that INEC will restore the name because every requirement of the law has been fulfilled,” Tella said.
In Gombe State, an aide to Pantami disclosed that the former minister was prepared to explore available legal remedies to challenge his exclusion.
Pantami emerged as the PDP governorship candidate following a court-ordered rerun of the party’s primary election on September 29, 2026.
His name had appeared on INEC’s provisional list published on August 29 but was missing from the final list released on October 10.
The development raised questions within the party about the circumstances surrounding his exclusion, particularly after his emergence from the court-ordered primary election.
The NDC has also protested the omission of its Kano State governorship candidate, Aminu Gwarzo, and his running mate, Mustapha Rabiu Kwankwaso.
The party’s National Publicity Secretary, Osa Director, said the NDC had formally written to INEC over the matter and received acknowledgements of its correspondence.
However, he maintained that the commission had yet to provide a substantive response to the party’s complaints.
INEC had earlier given political parties 14 days from the publication of the final list to notify the commission of candidates they believed had been wrongly omitted.
The opportunity was provided under Section 32(2) of the Electoral Act, 2026.
The deadline for submitting such complaints expired on October 24, 2026.
Thursday’s commission meeting is therefore expected to address the complaints arising from the omissions and determine whether any changes will be made to the final list of candidates.
However, INEC has not indicated whether Pantami, Adebutu or the other affected candidates will be reinstated.
The outcome of the meeting is expected to provide clarity on the commission’s position as political parties continue preparations for the February 6, 2027, governorship elections.
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