The Court of Appeal in Abuja has declared key provisions of the Electoral Act 2026 unconstitutional, ruling that they unlawfully restrict the powers of political parties over their internal affairs and candidate nomination process.
In a unanimous judgment delivered on Thursday, a three-member panel of the appellate court struck down Sections 77(5), 77(6), 77(7), and 84(2) of the Electoral Act 2026. The court held that the provisions conflict with Sections 221 and 222 of the 1999 Constitution, which guarantee political parties the right to determine how they operate and select candidates.
The appeal, marked CA/ABJ/CV/750/2026, was filed by the Zenith Party (ZP) against the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC). The panel was led by Justice Balkisu Bello Aliyu, while Justice Eberechi Nyesom-Wike delivered the lead judgment.
The court overturned an earlier Federal High Court ruling that had dismissed the Zenith Party’s suit. The party argued that the Electoral Act imposed unconstitutional conditions on political parties regarding membership registers and primary elections.
The nullified provisions required parties to submit their membership registers to INEC at least 21 days before primaries, use only the submitted register for party primaries, and barred parties that failed to comply from fielding candidates. Section 84(2) also limited candidate nomination procedures to direct primaries or consensus.
The Court of Appeal ruled that the Constitution already sets out the qualifications and disqualifications for candidates and political parties. It held that no provision of the Electoral Act could impose additional conditions that undermine constitutional rights.
The judgment is expected to have significant implications for political parties and INEC as preparations for the 2027 general elections gather momentum.
More details are expected.
