Major political parties are sitting on their final candidate lists, six days after primary elections wrapped up. Anxious aspirants across the country remain in limbo, unsure if their names will make the cut.
The All Progressives Congress, African Democratic Congress, Nigeria Democratic Congress, and Peoples Democratic Party have all delayed publishing their final rosters. Only presidential candidates have received their Certificates of Return so far.
Sitting governors and other hopefuls are still waiting for confirmation. Party leaders have suggested results announced at collation centres may not stick.
APC National Chairman Prof. Nentawe Yilwatda recently clarified that parties alone will announce final results.
Senate President Godswill Akpabio told disappointed primary losers the race isn't over.
Akpabio met with President Bola Ahmed Tinubu on Wednesday to discuss accommodating some colleagues who lost out. Speaker Abbas Tajudeen and other House leaders followed suit with their own meeting Thursday.
The delays have created widespread uncertainty among candidates hoping to contest in 2027. Many fear their names won't appear on official lists despite primary victories.
Election analysts say this breaks standard practice in Nigeria's political playbook. Parties typically release candidate names and submit them to the Independent National Electoral Commission immediately after primaries conclude.
Doing so lets INEC prepare for general elections while candidates begin campaign work. But that timeline isn't being followed this cycle.
INEC's 2027 timetable required all parties to finish primaries and settle disputes between April 23 and May 30, 2026. Deadline met — but the final lists haven't materialized.
As of yesterday evening, results from State Assembly, National Assembly, governorship and presidential primaries were nowhere to be found. The silence is deafening for eager candidates.
Sources told our correspondents the holdup stems from more than logistics alone. Party leadership is deliberately managing the fallout from contested primary contests.
Many parties switched to direct primaries this time around, bringing far more voters into the process than ever before. That's created headaches for party officials.
The 2023 elections used indirect primaries with fewer participants, allowing quicker result announcements. This time it's different and messier.
Consensus-based candidate selection also sparked controversy and disagreement among aspirants. Many viewed the process as rigged rather than genuinely consensual.
Party bigwigs now face pressure from rival camps within their own structures. Managing those tensions while preparing final lists is proving difficult.
Political observers expect the candidate lists to emerge soon, though no firm date has been set. For now, the waiting game continues.
