By Miriam Humbe
The Independent National Electoral Commission has insisted that the July 11 deadline given for political parties to submit the names of their presidential and National Assembly candidates for the 2027 general elections process remains sacrosanct.
INEC National Commissioner, Mohammed Haruna, in an interview on Saturday, therefore ruled out any extension of the deadline.
Mohammed Haruna said that political parties had until midnight to upload the names of their candidates through the commission’s nomination portal.
He said: “The deadline remains July 11. Political parties have until 12 midnight to complete their submission”.
He revealed that, as of the time of the interview, 14 political parties had uploaded candidates through the portal.
They include the Action Alliance, African Action Congress, African Democratic Congress, All Progressives Congress, All Progressives Grand Alliance, Allied Peoples Movement, Labour Party, Nigeria Democratic Congress, National Rescue Movement, Peoples Democratic Party, Peoples Redemption Party, Social Democratic Party, Young Progressives Party and Zenith Labour Party.
According to Haruna, only nine parties had submitted the names of their presidential candidates and running mates, while APGA, Labour Party, National Rescue Movement, Allied Peoples Movement and the Peoples Democratic Party had yet to do so.
He also confirmed that the APC had submitted President Bola Tinubu and Vice President Kashim Shettima as its presidential ticket but had not completed the upload of all its National Assembly candidates.
Despite the deadline, the commissioner explained that political parties facing challenges could still utilise the substitution window provided in the electoral timetable, provided they complied with the procedures outlined by the Electoral Act.
He noted that where parties were unable to complete uploads through the portal, the commission would examine any request for substitution before deciding whether to approve it.
Meanwhile, the Young Progressives Party called on INEC to extend the submission deadline, citing technical difficulties encountered while uploading candidates’ names.
The party’s National Publicity Secretary, Wale Egbeola-Martins, said the challenges affected several states and were not peculiar to the YPP, urging the commission to grant more time in the interest of fairness and inclusiveness.
However, civil society organisation Women Arise opposed any extension, arguing that political parties had been given adequate notice through INEC’s electoral timetable and should comply with the established deadlines.
Its founder, Joe Okei-Odumakin, said respecting the commission’s timelines was essential to maintaining the credibility and integrity of the electoral process.
