Several political parties have said they met the Independent National Electoral Commission’s (INEC) October 24 deadline to report or correct the omission of candidates from published lists ahead of the 2027 elections, but uncertainty remains over the status of some affected aspirants.

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) and Action Democratic Party (ADP) confirmed that they had complied with the deadline, according to reports by Vanguard. The Labour Party (LP) also said it remained in good standing with INEC regarding the correction of names and replacement of candidates.

PDP National Organising Secretary, Captain Umar Bature (retd.), said the party completed the required process within the stipulated period. The affected candidates include its governorship hopefuls in Ogun and Gombe states, Oladipupo Adebutu and Professor Isa Pantami, respectively, as well as several House of Assembly candidates.

The NDC’s National Publicity Secretary, Osa Director, also confirmed that the party met the deadline, while ADP National Chairman, Yabagi Yusuf Sani, gave a similar assurance. LP National Publicity Secretary, Ken Asogwa, said the party was confident about its compliance with INEC’s requirements.

However, the parties’ statements do not, by themselves, establish that every omitted candidate has been restored to the official list. INEC had earlier explained that the omissions followed a Supreme Court judgment concerning statutory requirements for political parties’ membership registers and their eligibility to sponsor candidates.

Among those still awaiting clarification are NDC’s John Upan and African Democratic Congress (ADC) aspirant Ambassador Nkoyo Toyo in Cross River State. Toyo told Vanguard that she had completed the required steps before the deadline but had yet to receive a definitive response from the commission.

INEC’s Head of Voter Education in Cross River State, Osaro Aisen, said the matter was being handled at the commission’s headquarters in Abuja and involved legal considerations. He declined to give a categorical answer while awaiting further clarification.

The commission had fixed October 24 as the deadline for parties that believed their candidates were wrongly omitted from the relevant lists to notify it. The deadline followed provisions of the Electoral Act 2026, as cited in INEC’s earlier explanation.

With the 2027 elections approaching, the outstanding issue is whether the commission will accept the affected parties’ submissions and what its final position will be on the candidates whose names remain disputed. Until INEC issues a definitive clarification, claims of compliance should not be confused with confirmation that every affected candidate has been cleared to contest.