THE names of former Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Prof. Isa Ali Ibrahim Pantami, and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governorship candidate in Ogun State, Ladi Adebutu, alongside their respective running mates, are conspicuously missing from the final list of governorship candidates released by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) ahead of the 2027 elections.
News Point Nigeria reports that INEC released the final lists in line with the commitment of its Chairman, Prof. Joash Amupitan, who had announced the commission’s plan to publish the candidates’ names during a press conference in Abuja earlier in the week.
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While 16 candidates were cleared to contest the February 6, 2027 governorship election in Gombe State, the final list for Ogun State contained the names of 13 governorship candidates and their running mates.
However, Pantami, who featured on the provisional list for Gombe published on August 29, was absent from the final list, just as Adebutu and his running mate, Yemi Sowunmi-Kolapo, were omitted from the Ogun list.
In Gombe State, the candidates included Bala Bello Tinka of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Jamilu Isyaku Gwamna of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and Babayo Ardo Kumo of the Nigerian Democratic Congress (NDC).
Others cleared to contest the election were Zubairu Mu’azu Halilu of the Labour Party (LP), Lamela L. Silas of the Allied Peoples Movement (APM), Ibrahim Jalo Abubakar of the Peoples Redemption Party (PRP) and Adamu Mohammed Ma’aji of the Social Democratic Party (SDP), among others.
Pantami’s exclusion comes amid a series of legal and political developments surrounding his emergence as the PDP governorship candidate in Gombe State.
The former minister had defected from the APC to the PDP on May 19 before emerging as the party’s candidate. However, his victory in the party’s primary was challenged in court by Ahmed Mailantarki Mailantarki, one of the aspirants who contested for the PDP ticket.
A Federal High Court sitting in Gombe subsequently nullified the primary election and ordered the party to conduct a fresh exercise, which Pantami won again.
Despite his emergence from the fresh primary, uncertainty continued to trail his eligibility to participate in the 2027 governorship election, particularly following a September 24 Supreme Court judgment concerning provisions of the Electoral Act 2026.
The judgment restored Sections 77(5), (6), (7) and 84(2) of the Act, which bar political parties from fielding candidates whose names were not included in the membership register submitted to INEC within the stipulated period.
The provisions have raised questions about the eligibility of candidates whose party membership records do not satisfy the statutory requirements, with the commission also indicating that some political parties might be unable to field candidates in the 2027 elections.
Mohammed Haruna, an INEC National Commissioner, had alluded to the implications of the Supreme Court judgment when he appeared on Trust TV’s Daily Politics, where he said some political parties would not field candidates in the forthcoming elections in line with the ruling.
In Ogun State, the absence of Adebutu and Sowunmi-Kolapo from INEC’s final list has similarly drawn attention to the PDP’s position ahead of the governorship election.
A check of the commission’s portal showed that the final list, signed by INEC Secretary, Rose Oriaran-Anthony, contained 13 governorship candidates and their running mates, with the PDP ticket missing.
In contrast, the APC governorship candidate, Solomon Adeola, popularly known as Yayi, and his running mate, Kudirat Abiodun Balogun, were included on the list.
Jimi Lawal, an ally of former Kaduna State Governor Nasir El-Rufai, was also listed as the ADC governorship candidate in Ogun State.
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Other political parties whose candidates appeared on the final list included the Action Alliance (AA), Action Democratic Party (ADP), APM, Allied Peoples Party (APP), Boot Party (BP), New Democratic Party (NDP), New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP), National Rescue Movement (NRM), SDP and Young Progressives Party (YPP), among others.
The omissions of Pantami in Gombe and the Ogun PDP candidates have placed the spotlight on the finalisation of candidates’ lists ahead of the 2027 governorship elections, particularly as political parties navigate legal challenges and compliance with electoral requirements.
