The 2027 governorship contest has moved into a more defined phase after the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) published the particulars of candidates nominated by political parties for the governorship and State Houses of Assembly elections.
The publication, made on Saturday, places prominent political figures including Niger State Governor Mohammed Umaru Bago, former Minister of Communications and Digital Economy Isa Ali Ibrahim Pantami, and Kwara State House of Assembly Speaker Yakubu Danladi-Salihu among those whose candidacies have been formally listed by the electoral commission
INEC said the exercise was carried out pursuant to Section 29(3) of the Electoral Act 2026 which requires it to publish candidates’ particulars within 21 days of receiving the relevant information from political parties.
The disclosure gives voters an official picture of the nominees presented by the various parties. Meanwhile, several states are already showing a crowded field ahead of the 2027 governorship elections.
In Nasarawa State, INEC published the particulars of 14 governorship candidates. The list includes Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) candidate Emmanuel David Ombugadu and Ahmed Aliyu Wadada of the All Progressives Congress (APC).
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Other nominees listed in the state are Musa Adamu Angbazo of the Social Democratic Party (SDP), Dahiru Musa Doma of the Action Peoples Party (APP), Jonathan Gaza Gbefwi of the Labour Party (LP), Angbazo of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Ibrahim Kasimu Aboh of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA), and Christopher Mamman of the Action Democratic Party (ADP).
Abdullahi Omame Abisabo of the Peoples Redemption Party (PRP), Abubakar Abdu Giza, Mohammed Awwal Suleiman of the Allied Peoples Movement (APM), Abdullah Bukhari of the Action Alliance (AA), Kigbu John Tanko of the Young Progressives Party (YPP), and Dogo Danladi Shammah of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) also featured on the list.
Kwara State has nine candidates on the published governorship list, led by APC nominee Danladi-Salihu. The PDP is represented by Sulaiman Bolakale Kawu, while Ridwan Apaokagi is the SDP candidate.
Adeshina Ajisafe of the ADP, Seko Jubril Gure of the Accord Party (AP), Abdulmunin Yinka Ajia of the NDC, Omotoso Bamidele Olaitan of the African Action Party (AAP), Kolo Ezekiel of the AA, and Oluwole Tolu of the APM are also listed.
In Niger State, the commission published particulars of 15 candidates. They include Bago and other nominees drawn from parties including the NNPP, PDP, APGA, NDP, Labour Party (LP), Zenith Labour Party (ZLP), APP, and YPP.
The publication is significant because it moves the contest beyond party-level nominations into a formal electoral record and gives the public an official reference for candidates cleared for the next stage of the 2027 governorship race.
