The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has granted access codes to nine political parties to enable them upload the names of their candidates for the 2027 general elections.
LEADERSHIP gathered that the parties include the All Progressives Congress (APC), Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), African Democratic Congress (ADC), Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), among others.
The candidates are expected to contest for the offices of President, Senate, House of Representatives and governorship seats across the country, with the exception of Kogi and Osun states which operate off-cycle governorship elections.
A senior official of the commission, who spoke with LEADERSHIP on condition of anonymity on Monday, confirmed that the NDC was among the parties granted access to the portal, dismissing reports that the party had been denied the necessary credentials.
“It is misinformation to suggest that the NDC was denied access code to upload its candidates to the INEC portal,” the official said.
“The commission has no reason whatsoever to deny any registered political party access to the platform. I can confirm on good authority that the NDC was among the parties that received their access codes to upload the names of their candidates.”
The clarification comes amid claims by officials of the Nigeria Democratic Congress, which has been embroiled in a legal dispute over moves to deregister the party.
According to media reports, an NDC official, Osa Director, had alleged that the party approached INEC to obtain the access code but was informed that the commission would get back to it.
“We approached INEC to collect the access code to upload the names of our candidates to the INEC portal. They told us that they would get back to us,” he was quoted as saying, insisting that any delay in uploading candidates should not be blamed on the party.
However, the INEC source maintained that the commission had treated all eligible political parties fairly and transparently, adding that more parties were expected to receive access before the close of business on Monday.
The official disclosed that the number of parties granted access codes could rise to 13 by the end of the day.
He urged Nigerians to disregard rumours suggesting that certain political parties would be barred from accessing the commission’s candidate nomination portal, stressing that INEC remained committed to providing a level playing field for all participants in the 2027 electoral process.
