Anxiety Mounts as Political Parties Begin Uploading Candidates’ Lists to INEC Portal

Anxiety has gripped aspirants across Nigeria’s major political parties following the commencement of the upload of candidates’ particulars to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) portal for the 2027 general election.

The electoral umpire opened its nomination portal on Friday, marking the next phase of preparations for the polls. However, unlike previous election cycles, several political parties are yet to publicly release the names of candidates who emerged from their primaries, leaving many aspirants uncertain about their political fate.

The development has generated concern, particularly among contestants for National Assembly and State House of Assembly seats, many of whom have yet to receive official confirmation of their nominations.

Traditionally, successful aspirants receive certificates of return and complete INEC nomination forms before their parties upload their details to the commission’s portal. This time, however, most political parties have withheld their official candidates’ lists from public scrutiny.

The Labour Party is the only major party to have officially published its list of candidates. The party said it cleared 1,211 candidates for the 2027 elections, comprising one presidential candidate, 28 governorship candidates, 99 senatorial candidates, 307 House of Representatives candidates and 776 State House of Assembly candidates. The list was ratified by the party’s National Executive Committee (NEC).

The failure of other leading political parties to release their lists has heightened uncertainty among aspirants.

Reports of discontent have been particularly pronounced within the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), where several serving lawmakers are reportedly dissatisfied with the outcome of the party’s primaries.

The situation drew public attention when Senate President Godswill Akpabio appealed to the APC leadership during the inauguration of the party’s National Campaign Council for the Ekiti State governorship election, urging that all elected lawmakers be accommodated on the final list.

“The party is supreme. I’m only pleading with the party to ensure that when they release their final list, they include all of us. Some of my people have hypertension,” Akpabio said.

Responding to concerns over the delayed publication of candidates’ names, APC National Publicity Secretary Felix Morka reportedly argued that making the lists public prematurely could create unnecessary controversy. Instead, he suggested that aspirants verify their status once the names appear on INEC’s portal.

Similar complaints have also emerged from aspirants within the African Democratic Congress (ADC) and the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), where some contestants have questioned the credibility of the primary election process and accused party leaders of manipulating outcomes.

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) presents a different scenario. Rival factions loyal to the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, and former Minister of Special Duties, Kabiru Tanimu Turaki, both conducted separate primary elections and issued certificates of return to their respective candidates. However, the faction recognised by INEC is expected to determine whose candidates will eventually appear on the commission’s portal.

Political observers believe many parties are withholding the publication of their candidates’ lists to minimise backlash from aggrieved aspirants.

An aspirant, who spoke anonymously, blamed the growing controversy on the direct primary system provided for under the Electoral Act 2026.

According to the source, unlike indirect primaries where accredited delegates vote openly at a central venue, direct primaries are conducted across constituencies, making the process more difficult to verify.

The aspirant argued that this creates opportunities for disputes over vote figures and allegations of manipulation because there is often no transparent mechanism for independently verifying results announced by party officials.

A former minister and senator from Lagos State also criticised the conduct of the APC primaries, alleging that the process lacked transparency in many states.

According to him, party members were often unaware of who eventually emerged as candidates because the final lists were allegedly determined by influential party leaders rather than through transparent voting.

He claimed that in some instances, aspirants who reportedly secured overwhelming support during the primaries were not declared winners, fuelling allegations that the process was manipulated.

With INEC’s candidate nomination portal now open, many aspirants across political parties are anxiously awaiting the publication of the final lists, which will determine who eventually secures a place on the ballot for the 2027 general election.