2027: INEC Clears Atiku, 470 ADC Candidates

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has confirmed that it will only recognise candidates submitted by the leadership of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) headed by former Senate President David Mark for the 2027 general elections.

According to Ireporter Online, INEC disclosed that the recognised leadership has already uploaded candidates for 471 elective positions through the commission’s nomination portal. The submissions include candidates for the presidential election, all 109 senatorial districts and 360 House of Representatives constituencies.

INEC National Commissioner, Mohammed Haruna, explained that the commission granted the David Mark-led leadership access to the nomination portal following a Supreme Court judgment affirming its authority to lead the party. He stated that the recognised faction had since completed the submission of most of its candidates, while stressing that the rival faction had no legal authority to access the portal or submit candidates after failing in its legal bid for recognition.

Following the clarification by the electoral body, the ADC called for the investigation and prosecution of its factional leader, Nafiu Bala Gombe, over allegations that he falsely claimed to have uploaded the party’s candidates through INEC’s restricted nomination platform.

In a statement issued by the party’s National Publicity Secretary, Bolaji Abdullahi, the ADC welcomed INEC’s clarification, describing documents circulated by Gombe as forged and dismissing his claim of gaining access to the commission’s portal as entirely false.

The party argued that the issue had gone beyond an internal leadership disagreement, insisting that it now involved an alleged attempt to deceive Nigerians and undermine confidence in the electoral process. It maintained that falsely claiming access to INEC’s restricted nomination platform was a serious offence that warranted immediate investigation by law enforcement agencies.

The ADC consequently urged INEC to ensure that Gombe and anyone connected to the alleged misinformation were investigated and prosecuted in accordance with the law.

Reacting to the Court of Appeal’s judgment delivered on Monday regarding the ADC leadership dispute, Haruna stated that the commission would withhold its official position until it obtained and carefully reviewed the Certified True Copy of the ruling. He expressed optimism that the judgment would be made available within 48 hours, after which the commission would determine its next course of action.

The Court of Appeal, in a majority decision, upheld an earlier judgment of the Federal High Court in Abuja, which restrained INEC from recognising state congresses conducted by caretaker committees established by the David Mark-led leadership. The lower court had ruled that dissolving the party’s state executives before the expiration of their tenure violated the ADC constitution and affirmed that the affected officials retained the authority to conduct congresses.

The legal challenge was initiated by seven state chairmen who contested their removal and the appointment of caretaker committees to oversee party congresses. Although the David Mark-led leadership, National Secretary Rauf Aregbesola and other party officials appealed the judgment, the appellate court upheld the decision of the Federal High Court.

Despite the ruling, the ADC insisted that the judgment related only to ward, local government and state congresses and did not affect the direct primary elections that produced its presidential and National Assembly candidates. The party maintained that the candidates already submitted to INEC remained valid and were not impacted by the court’s decision.