The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has commenced the issuance of access codes to registered political parties, enabling them to upload the names of their candidates for the 2027 general elections.
SAVANNAH NEWSNOW learned that nine political parties, including the All Progressives Congress (APC), Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), African Democratic Congress (ADC) and Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), have so far received the access credentials.
The access codes will allow the parties to submit the names of their candidates for the presidential, governorship, Senate, and House of Representatives elections.
However, the governorship elections in Kogi and Osun states are excluded due to their off-cycle election schedule.
A senior INEC official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, dismissed reports alleging that the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) had been denied access to the commission’s candidate nomination portal.
“It is misinformation to suggest that the NDC was denied an access code to upload its candidates to the INEC portal,” the official said.
“The commission has no reason whatsoever to deny any registered political party access to the platform. I can confirm on good authority that the NDC was among the parties that received their access codes to upload the names of their candidates.”
The clarification follows claims by an NDC official, identified as Osa Director, who reportedly alleged that the party had approached INEC for the access code but was told the commission would get back to them.
“We approached INEC to collect the access code to upload the names of our candidates to the INEC portal. They told us that they would get back to us,” the official was quoted as saying, insisting that any delay in the submission of candidates should not be blamed on the party.
However, the INEC source maintained that the commission had treated all eligible political parties fairly and transparently, stressing that additional parties were expected to receive their access codes before the close of business on Monday.
According to the official, the number of parties granted access could increase from nine to 13 by the end of the day.
The commission urged Nigerians to disregard reports suggesting that any eligible political party would be denied access to its candidate nomination portal, reaffirming its commitment to ensuring a transparent, inclusive, and level playing field for all participants in the 2027 general elections.
