By Akpos Oghenetega,
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has warned political parties that any primary election conducted outside its May 30, 2026, deadline could be declared invalid unless the Court of Appeal overturns a Federal High Court judgment currently being challenged by the commission.
INEC National Commissioner and Chairman of the Information and Voter Education Committee, Mohammed Kudu Haruna, issued the warning in an interview, stressing that political parties must continue to comply with the provisions of the Electoral Act 2026 pending the outcome of the commission's appeal.
"Obviously, 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 in some of its provisions," Haruna said.
He added: "In other words, for now, the political parties are better advised to be guided by the existing Act."
The warning comes amid an ongoing legal battle over INEC's timetable and guidelines for party primaries ahead of the 2027 general election. A Federal High Court in Abuja, presided over by Justice Mohammed Umar, nullified portions of INEC's electoral schedule after ruling that the commission lacked the authority to shorten timelines expressly provided under Section 29(1) of the Electoral Act 2026.
Delivering judgment in a suit filed by the Youth Party, Justice Umar held that INEC acted outside its statutory powers by abridging timelines for the submission of party membership records and candidates' particulars. The commission has since appealed the ruling and sought a stay of execution, insisting that its timetable was issued in line with its constitutional mandate.
Prior to the court decision, INEC had fixed April 23 to May 30, 2026, as the period for political parties to conduct primaries and nominate candidates for the 2027 elections.
In a related development, another Federal High Court judge, Justice James Omotosho, upheld INEC's constitutional authority to issue and amend election timetables. Ruling in a suit instituted by the Social Democratic Party, Justice Omotosho affirmed the commission's powers but emphasised that such authority must be exercised strictly within the limits prescribed by the Electoral Act 2026.
Meanwhile, the appeals committee of the African Democratic Congress in Kaduna State has ordered rerun primaries in several federal and state constituencies after uncovering what it described as significant irregularities in the party's nomination process.
Chairman of the committee, Dr Muhammed Fagge, said investigations revealed cases of procedural breaches, omission of aspirants from ballot papers, insufficient evidence of voting, and other electoral infractions. Consequently, the committee declared several primaries inconclusive and directed fresh elections in affected constituencies, including Ikara/Kubau and Kaduna South Federal Constituencies.
Fagge stated that reruns would be conducted across multiple constituencies and wards, including Kaura, Soba, Ikara, Kajuru, Birnin Gwari, Igabi, Kagarko, Zaria, Chikun/Kajuru, and Kudan/Makarfi, among others, to preserve the integrity of the party's candidate selection process.
The committee also ruled that any attempt to adopt a consensus arrangement in the Kaduna North Senatorial District would be invalid unless all aspirants consented, stressing that no candidate should be disadvantaged by procedural lapses or electoral irregularities.
Haruna's latest clarification underscores the legal uncertainty surrounding party primaries and signals that, pending the Court of Appeal's decision, political parties risk having any primary election conducted after the May 30 deadline rejected by INEC.
