Breaking! Court nullifies INEC’s party membership deadline
…extends submission of membership register to September 2026
By Ime Silas
The Federal High Court sitting in Abuja has struck down an Independent National Electoral Commission’s directive that required political parties to submit their full membership registers by May 10, 2026, to qualify for the 2027 general elections.
In a ruling delivered Thursday, Justice M.G. Umar held that INEC’s guideline shortened the timeframe set by the Electoral Act 2026. The case was brought by the Youth Party.
The court declared that Section 29(1) of the Electoral Act 2026 mandates parties to submit candidate details no later than 120 days before an election. As a result, INEC cannot impose an earlier deadline.
“The Defendant cannot lawfully abridge or limit that statutory period by prescribing a shorter time frame in its 2027 elections,” Justice Umar stated.
Under the ruling, all registered political parties now have until September 2026 to submit updated membership registers. The May 10 deadline is no longer valid.
The decision also gives politicians who lose party primaries more time to switch parties and run under a different platform ahead of the 2027 polls.
INEC has fixed the presidential and National Assembly elections for January 16, 2027. Governorship and state House of Assembly elections are scheduled for February 6, 2027.
…INEC cannot close party register -Barr Udim
It could be recalled that a renowned Akwa Ibom-born lawyer, Ekemini Udim, Esq, had faulted INEC’s decision to close political parties membership register, describing it as an infraction of the citizen’s right to belong to political parties of their choices.
In a post on his Facebook page last week, Barr Udim maintained that the matter was constitutional hence, INEC’s guidelines could not override the constitution of Nigeria.
According to Udim “The right to belong to a political party of one’s choice is a constitutional right guaranteed by S. 40 of the 1999 Constitution of Nigeria. (“Every person shall be entitled to form or belong to ANY political party of his choice”)”.
He noted that any citizen could join any political party even a day before election.
“There is No time limit in the Constitution. That means that Citizens are free to register at anytime. Even a day before election. Even on Election Day. For me, the provision in the timetable of INEC for the submission of membership register before primaries is an infraction of the Constitutional right of citizens to register and belong to any political party at anytime.
“The Guidelines cannot provide more than the Constitution. The register should remain open at all times. It shouldn’t even be submitted to INEC. What does INEC need the register for?”, Udim queried.
