The Supreme Court has upheld an appeal by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) against a Court of Appeal judgment that had voided provisions of the Electoral Act 2026 relating to political party membership registers and the nomination of candidates.
A seven-member panel of the apex court, led by Justice Adamu Jauro, on Thursday set aside the Court of Appeal’s judgment in favour of the Zenith Labour Party (ZLP) and restored the judgment of the Federal High Court, Abuja.
The Supreme Court held that Sections 77(5), 77(6), 77(7) and 84(2) of the Electoral Act 2026 were not inconsistent with the 1999 Constitution. It also awarded N2 million in costs against the ZLP.
The judgment brings to an end a legal dispute over the extent of INEC’s authority to regulate aspects of political party administration, particularly membership registers and the procedures for nominating candidates ahead of the 2027 general elections.
The dispute originated from a suit filed by the ZLP at the Federal High Court in Abuja, marked FHC/ABJ/509/2026.
The party challenged Sections 77(5), 77(6), 77(7) and 84(2) of the Electoral Act, arguing that the provisions conflicted with the 1999 Constitution and amounted to unconstitutional interference in the internal affairs of political parties.
Sections 77(5) to 77(7) deal with statutory requirements concerning political parties’ membership registers, while Section 84(2) prescribes direct primaries or consensus as methods for political parties to nominate candidates.
The ZLP relied, among other constitutional provisions, on Sections 221 and 222 of the 1999 Constitution, which provide the constitutional framework for political parties.
However, Justice Mohammed Umar of the Federal High Court dismissed the suit on 5 May 2026.
Dissatisfied with the decision, the ZLP appealed to the Abuja Division of the Court of Appeal in Appeal No. CA/ABJ/CV/750/2026.
On 16 July 2026, the Court of Appeal allowed the appeal in part and voided provisions of the Electoral Act dealing with party primaries and membership registers. The decision prompted INEC to approach the Supreme Court.
The appeal before the apex court was marked SC/CR/495/2026.
After hearing arguments from the parties on 16 September, the seven-member panel reserved judgment for a date to be communicated to the parties.
In its judgment on Thursday, the Supreme Court upheld INEC’s appeal and set aside the Court of Appeal’s decision.
The apex court specifically upheld the validity of Sections 77(5), 77(6) and 77(7), which regulate political party membership registers, and Section 84(2), which concerns the methods for nominating candidates.
The ruling effectively restored the position of the Federal High Court, which had dismissed the ZLP’s constitutional challenge.
In two separate judgments delivered the same day, the Supreme Court also dismissed appeals filed by the Social Democratic Party (SDP) and the Youth Party (YP) in their respective legal disputes with INEC.
In SDP v INEC, the apex court heard the appeal on its merits before dismissing it.
In the Youth Party case, the court upheld INEC’s preliminary objection and struck out the appeal for being incompetent. The court found that the appeal had been filed one day outside the prescribed time limit.
The Supreme Court’s decisions provide further judicial clarification of the legal framework governing political parties and electoral administration ahead of the 2027 general elections.
The rulings also restore the disputed provisions of the Electoral Act 2026 after the Court of Appeal had earlier declared parts of them invalid.
Leave a comment