2027: Court Invalidates INEC Timeline For Primaries, Nominations

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…CUPP Asks INEC To Obey Judgment, Adjust Timetable

ABUJA – Ahead of the 2027 general election, political parties have received relief after the Fed­eral High Court in Abuja in­validated the timeline that the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) issued for the conduct of primaries and the nomination of candidates.

The court, in a judgment de­livered by Justice Mohammed Umar, also set aside the INEC’s May 10 deadline requiring polit­ical parties to submit a register and database of all their mem­bers as a condition for qualify­ing to participate in the general elections.

It held that the time frame the commission imposed for political parties to conduct their prima­ries and to submit, withdraw, or replace the names and particu­lars of their candidates for the general elections “is inconsistent with the provisions of the Elec­toral Act, 2026.”

The judgment followed a legal action brought by the Youth Par­ty (YP) to compel INEC to com­ply with the Electoral Act 2026 120‑day pre‑election deadline for submitting party registers and candidates’ personal particulars.

Even though the judgment was delivered on Wednesday, the certified true copy (CTC) was made available on Thursday.

INEC was listed as the sole defendant in YP’s suit marked: FHC/ABJ/CS/517/2016.

The plaintiff had prayed the court to declare that upon a proper consideration and inter­pretation of the provisions of Sections 29, 82 and 84(1) of the Electoral Act, 2026, the powers of the INEC to receive notice of party primaries and the personal particulars of candidates, and its duty to attend, observe and mon­itor such primaries, does not ex­tend to fixing or prescribing the timetable within which political parties may conduct their prima­ry elections for the purpose of nominating candidates for the 2027 general elections.

While agreeing with the YP, Justice Umar declared that in view of the provisions of Section 29(1) of the Electoral Act, 2026, which requires political parties to submit the personal particu­lars of their candidates not lat­er than 120 days to an election, “INEC cannot lawfully abridge or limit that statutory period by prescribing a shorter timeframe in its 2027 election timetable.”

Likewise, the court held that in line with Section 31 of the Electoral Act 2026, which permits political parties to withdraw and substitute candidates not later than 90 days before the conduct of an election, the INEC lacks the powers to abridge or limit that statutory period by fixing an earlier deadline for the withdraw­al and replacement of candidates in its 2027 election timetable.

Justice Umar further held that by provisions of Section 32 of the Electoral Act, 2026, INEC does not possess the statutory power to publish the final list of candidates for the 2027 general election before the 60-day mini­mum period prescribed by law.

Other reliefs that were grant­ed by the court included: “A dec­laration is made that upon the proper construction of Section 98 of the Electoral Act, 2026, the defendant does not possess the statutory authority to fix in its timetable for the 2027 general elections for campaigns to end 2 days before the elections.”

As well as, “A declaration is made that upon the proper inter­pretation to Section 33 of the Elec­toral Act, 2026, the time frame prescribed by the defendant for submission of membership reg­isters for the conduct of primary elections is not applicable to pri­mary elections conducted for the purpose of replacing withdrawn candidates.”

The court made an order “setting aside or nullifying the time-frames imposed by the de­fendant in its Revised Timetable and Schedule of Activities for 2027 General Election for the conduct of primary elections by political parties for the 2027 general elec­tions, the submission of personal particulars of candidates by their political parties for the 2027 gener­al elections, the withdrawal and replacement of candidates by po­litical parties for the 2027 general elections, the publication of the final list of candidates for the 2027 general elections and campaign­ing for the 2027 general elections which is inconsistent with the pro­visions of the Electoral Act, 2026.”

CUPP Calls On INEC To Obey Court Judgment, Adjust Timetable

Meanwhile, the Coalition of United Political Parties (CUPP) and other major political parties have called on the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to obey the judgment of the Federal High Court sitting in Abuja, and adjust its timetable for the 2027 general elections.

Acting National Chairman of CUPP, Peter Ameh, in a state­ment on Thursday, said the judg­ment delivered by Justice M.G. Umar has expanded “the demo­cratic space by granting political parties greater flexibility in their internal affairs.”

He added that the judgment has reshaped the electoral pro­cess for the 2027 general elections.

The statement reads in part, “In a unanimous position, the parties urged the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to immediately comply with the court ruling by adjusting its revised timetable to align with the judgment.

“Key elements of the judg­ment include the right of politi­cians who lost primary elections to defect to another party and still be validly substituted as candi­dates, the nullification of the 21- day party register requirement, the exemption of substitution primaries from strict Electoral Act timelines, and the affirmation that INEC cannot dictate specific dates for internal party activities or unilaterally shorten submis­sion and publication windows.

“We commend the Federal High Court for this progressive and constitution-aligned judg­ment,” said Chief Peter Ameh, Acting National Chairman of the CUPP. “INEC must immediately obey this ruling and adjust its timetable accordingly. Any deci­sion to appeal this judgment will only create unnecessary uncer­tainty, erode public confidence, and undermine the credibility of the 2027 general elections.”

Ameh further disclosed that 14 political parties have resolved to announce extended party election timetables to accommodate new decampees and ensure a more in­clusive nomination process in line with the court’s decision.

The parties emphasised that the judgment strengthens inter­nal democracy, promotes party autonomy, and protects the rights of aspirants and candidates.

They called on INEC to work collaboratively with political parties to implement a revised, realistic timetable that reflects the Federal High Court’s clear directives.

“Political parties remain com­mitted to free, fair, and credible elections in 2027 and will contin­ue to defend democratic princi­ples through lawful means,” he added.