An INEC source, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorised to comment publicly, disclosed on Thursday night that Adebutu and Gwarzo were among those whose candidacies were affected by the commission’s review of complaints concerning the final lists of governorship and State Houses of Assembly candidates.
The source explained that Adebutu’s petition was unsuccessful because his name was missing from the list of candidates initially submitted to INEC by the PDP.
“His petition was rejected because his name was not included in the list of candidates originally submitted to INEC by the PDP,” the source said.
Regarding Gwarzo, the source said the Kano State deputy governor would have been cleared but for an interim ex parte order issued by the Federal High Court, restraining INEC from publishing his name.
He explained that the commission’s decision on Gwarzo remained subject to the outcome of the legal proceedings surrounding his candidacy.
“He would have scaled through, but unfortunately, there was an ex parte order from the Federal High Court barring INEC from publishing his name. That was the reason he was not cleared,” the source added.
The source further disclosed that INEC would publish an updated list of candidates on Friday.
The commission had initially released the names of candidates for the presidential, National Assembly, governorship and State Houses of Assembly elections on its website on October 10, 2026. However, the names of Adebutu, Pantami, Gwarzo and several others were absent from the published list.
In a statement issued on Thursday night, the Chairman of INEC’s Information and Voter Education Committee, Mohammed Haruna, announced that the commission had upheld 66 petitions and rejected 64 others challenging the final lists of governorship and State Houses of Assembly candidates for the 2027 general elections.
The complaints followed the publication of the final candidates’ lists and included allegations involving the omission of political parties, the inclusion of candidates whose names were not contained in their parties’ membership registers, and multiple nominations.
Haruna said the commission examined the complaints alongside relevant records and applicable legal provisions before reaching its decisions.
He stated that some petitions were found to have merit, leading to the approval of affected candidates and political parties, while those considered unsubstantiated were dismissed.
INEC also approved the removal of candidates whose names had been wrongly published after verification showed that they were absent from the membership registers submitted by their respective political parties.
According to the commission, it received 69 petitions from 12 political parties across 26 states concerning governorship candidates. Of the total, 41 were upheld, while 28 were rejected.
For the State Houses of Assembly elections, INEC received 61 petitions from 11 political parties across 11 states. The commission approved 25 petitions and dismissed the remaining 36.
The electoral body explained that its decisions concerning State Assembly candidates were based on the specific complaints submitted and assessed in line with the law and its established criteria.
It added that the affected candidates, political parties and states would be captured in the revised lists scheduled for publication on its website.
INEC reaffirmed its commitment to transparency, fairness and electoral credibility, assuring Nigerians that all complaints were considered on their merits and in accordance with relevant legal provisions.
The latest decision follows an earlier statement issued by the commission on October 13, 2026, addressing complaints arising from the publication of the final lists of governorship and State Houses of Assembly candidates.
At the time, INEC attributed some of the omissions to alleged breaches of the Electoral Act, 2026, particularly the provisions requiring political parties to submit their membership registers to the commission.
The electoral body said its position was informed by a Supreme Court judgment delivered on September 24, 2026, which affirmed the constitutionality of Section 77(5) to (7) of the Electoral Act, making the submission of party membership registers a mandatory requirement.
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