Nigeria: 2027 - Pantami, Gwarzo in, Adebutu Out

What the report says

Nigeria’s electoral commission, INEC, has reached a final decision on several candidates previously left off its list for the 2027 governorship and state assembly elections, according to Daily Trust. The review followed weeks of uncertainty after the commission published an initial list in October and then invited petitions from affected parties and candidates. INEC later said it received dozens of challenges and would decide which omissions could be corrected.

Among those cleared were former Communications and Digital Economy Minister Isa Ali Pantami and Abdulsalam Gwarzo, the governorship candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress in Kano State. However, INEC also said the clearance of some candidates remains tied to ongoing court cases, meaning a later ruling could still alter their status. The commission rejected a review request from Ladi Adebutu, the Peoples Democratic Party governorship candidate in Ogun State, after his name had been left out of the earlier list.

The report says INEC had previously omitted some candidates because of questions tied to party membership records and compliance with electoral rules, including requirements around the submission of party registers. That issue has become a broader point of dispute in the build-up to the 2027 polls, with several candidates and parties challenging exclusions through petitions and court actions.

The development matters because it affects who can contest in key states and highlights how legal and administrative disputes are shaping early positioning for Nigeria’s next general election.