INEC Rejects Claims It Smuggled Candidates Into Party Lists, Vows to Probe Allegations

Nigeria’s electoral commission has pushed back against an allegation that it inserted unauthorised candidates into a political party’s lists for the 2027 general election, saying the paper and electronic trail should show where the names came from.

The Nigeria Democratic Congress accused INEC officials of removing candidates it had nominated and replacing them with people the party neither selected nor approved. The party said the alleged substitutions affected some House of Assembly constituencies in Anambra State.

Adedayo Oketola, chief press secretary and media adviser to the INEC chairman, said the commission has no constitutional or statutory power to nominate candidates for political parties. “For the avoidance of doubt, INEC does not nominate candidates for political parties,” he said, adding that nomination rests with the parties, subject to the constitution, the Electoral Act 2026 and other applicable rules.

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For the avoidance of doubt, INEC does not nominate candidates for political parties. The nomination of candidates is the responsibility of political parties, subject to compliance with the constitution, the Electoral Act 2026, and other applicable laws, regulations and guidelines.

Oketola also rejected the idea that the commission could choose a preferred candidate or replace someone validly nominated by a party. He said INEC would scrutinise records for the constituencies identified by the NDC, arguing that the allegation that officials had “smuggled” names into the party’s list was too serious to resolve through speculation.

The commission’s candidate nomination portal operates through access credentials issued to political parties, according to Oketola. Each action is electronically recorded, allowing officials to trace the history of entries and determine how individual names reached the system.

In a separate Bauchi development, INEC displayed the names and biodata of 19 governorship candidates and their running mates at its state office. The candidates were presented by parties seeking to contest the governorship election, and party officials and supporters visited the office to inspect the list.

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Similarly, the commission does not possess the legal authority to select a candidate for a political party or substitute its own preferred candidate for a person validly nominated by a political party in accordance with the law.