2027: Itodo alerts political parties of key provision in Electoral Act

The Executive Director of Yiaga Africa, Samson Itodo has warned political parties of 2026 Electoral Act’s provision that may jeopardize their candidates for 2027 election

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) had indicated that submission of party membership registers would take place between April 1 and April 21, 2026.

Itodo, in a post on X handle on Friday alerted parties that they are mandated to submit the digital register of their members to the INEC ahead of the primaries which were expected to begin barely three months away.

According to him, there are critical provision in the 2026 Electoral Act that may has serious consequences, including their inability to field candidates for the 2027 elections if not adhered to.

He said that the 2026 Electoral Act mandated the parties to submit the register 21 days before any primary, congress, or convention.

He noted that such electronic register must contain the name, sex, date of birth, address, state, local government area (LGA), ward, polling unit, National Identification Number (NIN), and photograph of each member of the political parties.

He said that the 2026 Electoral Act specified that the register must be submitted in both hard and soft copies.

He also said that most political parties may not be able to meet up with the requirement as they lack digital membership register that meets requirements outlined in the Electoral Act.

He, however, urged the political parties to embark on process of compiling membership register that meet the requirement to avoid disqualification of their candidates from the polls by INEC.

“In preparation for primaries commencing on April 23, 2026, the Electoral Act 2026 requires each political party to submit its digital membership register to the INEC at least 21 days prior to any primary, congress, or convention. Non-compliance will result in disqualification from fielding candidates.

“The Electoral Act 2026 also prescribes the required format and content for the digital membership register. Each register must contain the following information for every member: name, sex, date of birth, address, state, local government area (LGA), ward, polling unit, National Identification Number (NIN), and photograph. Submissions must include both hard and soft copies in the specified format.

“Currently, most political parties do not possess a digital membership register that meets all requirements outlined in the Electoral Act 2026. Given the strict 21-day submission deadline and the limited time before primaries, parties are advised to promptly update, digitize, and verify their membership registers to ensure compliance. Non-compliance will result in serious consequences, including disqualification from fielding candidates in the 2027 elections,” he said.

Itodo advice was coming on the heels of the rescheduling of the timetable for the 2027 General Election by INEC on Thursday.

Under the revised timetable, INEC had stated that Presidential and National Assembly elections will hold on Saturday, January 16, 2027, while Governorship and State Houses of Assembly elections will follow on Saturday, Feb. 6, 2027.

The revised timetable issued on Thursday in Abuja also showed that party primaries, including dispute resolution, would begin on April 23 and end on May 30, 2026.

INEC also indicated that submission of party membership registers would take place between April 1 and April 21, 2026.

Nomination forms for presidential and National Assembly candidates will be submitted from June 27 to July 11, 2026 while governorship and State Assembly nomination forms will be accepted from July 18 to Aug. 8, 2026.

The updated were necessitated over protests by civil societies and politicians against the earlier Electoral Act proposed by the National Assembly before it was re-amended, passed and sent to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, who swiftly signed it into law, drawing another round of criticisms.