Electoral commission on Saturday placed All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate Kingsley Chinda on its final list for the 2027 Rivers State governorship election, while dropping the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) candidates in Kano and Nasarawa states.
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) published the final list of candidates for the 2027 general elections, citing a Supreme Court judgement of September 24 on whether parties complied with statutory rules on membership registers for primaries, congresses and conventions.
Chinda recognised
INEC accepted Chinda, a serving House of Representatives member and ally of Federal Capital Territory Minister Nyesom Wike, as the APC flagbearer in Rivers, despite questions over the validity of his nomination. Chinda defected to the APC to contest its primary.
Others struck out
Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governorship hopefuls Isa Pantami and Ladi Adebutu were disqualified over similar allegations tied to party membership requirements.
The NDC’s governorship candidates in Kano and Nasarawa were also removed. Former Deputy Governor Aminu Abdulsalam, also referred to as Aminu Abdussalam Gwarzo, was named the NDC’s Kano candidate in May after leaving the APC. Musa Shugaba-Abdulahi was the party’s flagbearer in Nasarawa.
Eligibility row
Chinda’s inclusion comes amid debate over eligibility rules restored by the Supreme Court. They bar parties from fielding candidates whose names were not in the membership register submitted to INEC within the stipulated period.
The Rivers APC maintains that Chinda registered as a member in time and that the judgement does not invalidate his nomination.
