The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has included All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate Kingsley Chinda in its final list for the 2027 Rivers State governorship election, despite controversy over his nomination.
The electoral commission on Saturday released the final list of candidates for various positions in the upcoming 2027 general elections based on a Supreme Court judgement surrounding party membership.
The apex court delivered a judgement on September 24 on compliance with the statutory requirements governing the submission and use of political parties’ membership registers for party primaries, congresses and conventions.
Despite citing the court judgement, INEC recognised Mr Chinda as a candidate in the 2027 election amid questions about the validity of his nomination after he defected to contest the APC primary, while Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governorship hopefuls Isa Pantami and Ladi Adebutu were disqualified over similar allegations.
Additionally, the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) governorship candidates in Kano and Nasarawa states were also dropped by INEC from its list.
Former Deputy Governor Aminu Abdulsalam was named NDC governorship candidate in Kano State in May after defecting from the APC, while Musa Shugaba-Abdulahi emerged as the party’s flagbearer in Nasarawa.