2027: PDP Faction Submits Jonathan’s Name To INEC As Presidential Candidate

The Kabiru Turaki-led Interim National Working Committee of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) says it has manually submitted the nomination of former President Goodluck Jonathan and the names of its other candidates for the 2027 general elections to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), despite the commission’s refusal to recognise the committee.

The faction said the manual submission became necessary after INEC allegedly refused to provide the access codes required for electronic submission, insisting that the process complied fully with the Electoral Act 2026.

Speaking during a press conference on Friday, the committee’s National Publicity Secretary, Comrade Ini Ememobong, said the submission covered Jonathan’s presidential nomination, governorship candidates, candidates for the National Assembly and state Houses of Assembly.

“Notwithstanding INEC’s refusal to provide us with the necessary access codes… we have successfully submitted, manually and in full compliance with the Electoral Act 2026, the list of candidates sponsored by the authentic Peoples Democratic Party,” Ememobong said.

He added that the electoral commission acknowledged receipt of the documents.

The PDP faction, however, warned INEC against publishing any candidates’ list other than the one submitted by the committee.

“Should the Commission publish names other than those lawfully submitted by us… we are exhausting every constitutional, legal and democratic avenue to ensure that our party is not hijacked or annexed to the ruling party,” he said.

Explaining the leadership dispute within the party, Ememobong said the Supreme Court judgment on the PDP’s leadership created a vacuum, prompting the party’s Board of Trustees and a requisitioned National Executive Committee meeting to constitute the Interim National Working Committee.

He alleged that although INEC was formally notified of the development, the commission refused to recognise the interim leadership, forcing the party to seek redress in court.

Ememobong also faulted the recent Federal High Court judgment on the matter.

“The judgment… reads more like an appeal on the judgment of the Supreme Court and the Court of Appeal. It is clearly inconsistent with the extant decisions of the Supreme Court and the Court of Appeal that form the foundation of our case,” he said.

He disclosed that the party had already appealed the judgment and would also challenge what it described as discrepancies between the judgment delivered in court and its Certified True Copy.

The PDP spokesman further accused INEC of abandoning its role as an impartial electoral umpire.

“The Commission’s actions have regrettably reinforced the growing public perception that it is no longer acting with the impartiality expected of the nation’s electoral umpire,” Ememobong said.

He alleged that the commission withheld material facts during court proceedings involving the PDP and ignored congresses it monitored, warning that such actions were undermining public confidence in the electoral process.

Ememobong also claimed the PDP was the first casualty of a broader effort to weaken opposition parties and entrench a one-party state.

“We were the pioneer target for opposition dismantling and capture… but it has now spread to almost all the opposition parties,” he said.

He urged Nigerians to defend the country’s multi-party democracy, warning that electoral authoritarianism poses a threat to democratic consolidation, while expressing confidence that the party would eventually prevail in the legal battle.

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