INEC recognises David Mark-led ADC, validates Atiku’s candidacy

INEC recognises David Mark-led ADC, validates Atiku’s candidacy

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has confirmed that it will recognise only the candidates submitted by the Senator David Mark-led leadership of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) for the 2027 general elections, effectively clearing former Vice President Atiku Abubakar and 470 other candidates to contest on the party’s platform.

The electoral commission’s clarification settles, for now, the dispute over which faction of the ADC is authorised to submit candidates for the 2027 polls, even as legal battles over the party’s internal leadership continue.

Speaking on the development, INEC National Commissioner and Chairman of the Information and Voter Education Committee, Mohammed Haruna, disclosed that the commission granted the David Mark-led leadership access to its secure candidate nomination portal following a Supreme Court judgment affirming the faction’s leadership of the party.

According to Haruna, the recognised leadership has already uploaded candidates for 471 elective positions, comprising two presidential candidates, 109 senatorial candidates, and 360 House of Representatives candidates.

“Yes, we gave the Mark-led faction the code based on the recent Supreme Court judgment that affirmed his leadership of the party, and the faction has since submitted most of its candidates for a total of 471—presidential (2), senatorial (109) and House of Representatives (360) constituencies,” Haruna said.

He added that the Supreme Court did not authorise INEC to receive nominations from the rival faction, stressing that the group had already lost its appeal seeking recognition.

“The court, however, did not say we should accept any submissions by the rival faction which, in any case, had lost its appeal for recognition,” he stated.

Haruna further disclosed that the commission would carefully study the Certified True Copy (CTC) of the latest Court of Appeal judgment before taking an official position on its implications for the party’s internal affairs.

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According to him, INEC will only make a formal decision after examining the details of the appellate court’s ruling.

The clarification followed claims by the rival ADC faction led by Nafiu Bala Gombe, which alleged that it had obtained access to INEC’s nomination portal and successfully uploaded candidates for the 2027 elections.

Reacting, the ADC welcomed INEC’s position and accused the rival faction of attempting to mislead Nigerians by circulating forged documents.

In a statement signed by the party’s National Publicity Secretary, Bolaji Abdullahi, the party said INEC had confirmed that the document circulated by the rival faction claiming access to the commission’s nomination portal was forged.

According to the party, falsely claiming access to INEC’s restricted nomination platform is a serious offence capable of undermining public confidence in Nigeria’s electoral process.

The party therefore urged INEC and security agencies to investigate those behind the alleged forgery and prosecute anyone found culpable in accordance with the law.

The development comes shortly after the Court of Appeal upheld an earlier Federal High Court judgment restraining INEC from recognising state congresses conducted by committees appointed by the David Mark-led caretaker leadership of the ADC.

However, the party maintained that the appellate court’s decision relates only to the conduct of ward, local government and state congresses, insisting that it has no effect on the direct primary elections through which its presidential, senatorial and House of Representatives candidates emerged.

The ADC said the ruling does not invalidate the emergence of Atiku Abubakar as its presidential candidate or affect the validity of candidates already nominated for the 2027 elections.

Political observers say INEC’s latest clarification provides greater certainty over the party’s candidate nomination process, although the broader legal dispute over the ADC’s leadership structure is expected to continue in court.

With the nomination process now largely concluded, attention is expected to shift to the resolution of pending litigation, campaign preparations and political realignments ahead of the 2027 general elections.

The recognition of the David Mark-led ADC is also viewed as a significant boost for the opposition coalition that adopted the party as its platform to challenge the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) in the next presidential election.

As legal proceedings continue, analysts believe the courts will ultimately determine the outstanding issues surrounding the party’s internal leadership, while INEC remains guided by existing judicial pronouncements in administering the electoral process.

INEC recognises David Mark-led ADC, validates Atiku’s candidacy