The Supreme Court on Thursday, September 24, 2026, voided the judgement of the Court of Appeal and reinstated provisions of the Electoral Act 2026 on political party primaries and membership registers.
A seven-member panel of the apex court led by Justice Adamu Jauro allowed appeal by the Independent National Electoral Commission and therefore set aside the decision of the Court of Appeal in favour of the Zenith Labour Party (ZLP), and affirmed a Federal High Court’s earlier judgment.
The Supreme Court held that Sections 77(5) and 84 of the Electoral Act did not conflict with the provisions of the 1999 Constitution (as amended) and awarded N2 million in costs against the ZLP.
Similarly, the apex court dismissed an appeal by the Social Democratic Party (SDP) and also struck out an appeal by the Youth Party.
The SDP’s appeal was dismissed after being heard on its merits, while the Youth Party’s case was struck out after the court upheld a preliminary objection, ruling that it was filed one day outside the prescribed time.
The legal dispute over some guidelines by INEC began after the Federal High Court in Abuja, presided over by Justice Mohammed Umar, dismissed the ZLP’s suit on May 5, 2026.
ZLP had argued that provisions of the Electoral Act regulating membership registers and candidate nomination amounted to unconstitutional interference in the internal affairs of political parties, and stressed that it conflicted with Sections 221 and 222 of the 1999 Constitution (as amended).
Not satisfied with the judgment of the Federal High Court, the ZLP appealed, and on July 16, 2026, the Court of Appeal partly allowed the appeal as it voided provisions of the Electoral Act relating to party primaries and membership registers.
However, INEC challenged the judgement of the Court of Appeal at the Supreme Court.
The provisions of the Electoral Act 2026 at the centre of the dispute included; Sections 77(5), 77(6), 77(7), and 84(2) of the Electoral Act 2026.
Sections 77(5), 77(6), and 77(7) relates to the statutory requirements for political parties’ membership registers, while Section 84(2) prescribes direct primaries or consensus as methods for nominating candidates.
