Nigeria's Supreme Court overturns the 2027 election timetable

Written by Ziad Abdel Fattah:

The Federal Supreme Court in Abuja, Nigeria, overturned key aspects of Timetable The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) set the rules for the 2027 general election, considering that the electoral body had exceeded its legal powers.

The Independent National Electoral Commission imposed dates illegally.

Judge Mohamed Omar, who issued the ruling in a lawsuit filed by the Youth Party, said that the Independent National Electoral Commission had unlawfully imposed restrictive deadlines on political parties to conduct primaries and other pre-election activities, in violation of the Elections Act 2026.

The court said the Independent National Electoral Commission does not have the legal authority to set or impose dates for political parties to hold their primary elections to nominate candidates before the 2027 elections.

The lawsuit, which bears the number, challenged several provisions contained in the revised timetable and schedule of activities of the Independent National Electoral Commission for the 2027 general elections.

Judge Omar issued a decision accepting all six requests submitted by the Youth Party, and declared that the commission does not have the authority to shorten or change the time limits stipulated in the election law regarding the submission of candidate data, withdrawal of nominations and their replacement, and election campaign periods.

According to the ruling, political parties are entitled to adhere to the full legal deadlines, including the 120-day deadline for submitting candidate data, and the 90-day period allowed for withdrawing or replacing candidate nominations before the elections.

The court ruled that the Independent National Electoral Commission may not publish the final list of candidates before the expiry of the minimum period stipulated in the electoral law, which is 60 days.

The committee does not have the authority to end campaigns two days before the elections.

In another important decision, the court ruled that the Independent National Electoral Commission does not have the authority to compel political campaigns to end their campaigns two days before the elections, declaring that these provisions are inconsistent with Article 98 of the Elections Act 2026.

Later, Judge Omar nullified parts of the Independent National Electoral Commission's timetable that he deemed unlawful, calling them invalid and unenforceable.

This ruling is expected to significantly impact preparations for the 2027 general election and may require the Independent National Electoral Commission to issue a revised timetable in accordance with the election law.