A Federal High Court in Abuja has dismissed a lawsuit filed by the National Democratic Congress (NDC) seeking to nullify key provisions of the Electoral Act 2026 relating to candidate qualification and political party membership registers.
Delivering judgment on Tuesday, Justice Muhammed Umar ruled that Section 138 of the Electoral Act does not conflict with the 1999 Constitution, rejecting the NDC’s argument that the provision was unconstitutional.
The court held that Section 138, which removes candidate qualification as a ground for election petitions after an election, complements the Constitution by prescribing the procedure and timeline for raising such disputes.
“The provision of Section 138 of the Electoral Act 2026 complements the provision of the Constitution but is not in conflict with it. The contention of the plaintiff that Section 138 is inconsistent with the Constitution is of no merit,” Justice Umar ruled.
The NDC had also challenged Section 77(5) of the Act, which limits participation in party primaries, congresses and conventions to members whose names appear on registers submitted to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) at least 21 days before the exercise.
However, Justice Umar ruled that the issue had already been determined by the Court of Appeal, making the earlier appellate judgment the binding legal position. In July, the appellate court struck down Sections 77(5), (6) and (7), along with Section 84(2) of the Electoral Act, holding that the provisions conflicted with constitutional rights granted to political parties.
The court also upheld a preliminary objection filed by the Clerk of the National Assembly, who argued that the NDC failed to issue the mandatory pre-action notice before filing the suit. Justice Umar agreed, ruling that the omission rendered the case incompetent and liable to be struck out.
He further clarified that the matter was not a pre-election case despite the inclusion of INEC’s election timetable in the court filings, explaining that the suit primarily sought judicial interpretation of constitutional and statutory provisions.
The NDC had asked the court to declare that questions surrounding the qualification of candidates could still be raised after elections. The Attorney-General of the Federation, the Clerk of the National Assembly, Senate President Godswill Akpabio, and INEC were listed as defendants in the suit.
The ruling is expected to further shape legal interpretations of the Electoral Act 2026 as political parties and candidates prepare for future elections under Nigeria’s evolving electoral framework.
