The House of Representatives Committee on Electoral Matters has asked the Independent National Electoral Commission to enforce party membership rules ahead of the 2027 general elections, including auditing candidates against membership registers submitted by political parties.
The committee made the demand in a letter to INEC signed by its Chairman, Bayo Balogun, following the Supreme Court’s recent judgment upholding provisions of the Electoral Act 2026 on party membership registers and candidate nomination.
The Supreme Court, on September 24, restored Sections 77(5), 77(6), 77(7) and 84(2) of the Electoral Act after overturning an earlier Court of Appeal decision that had invalidated the provisions.
Under Section 77(5), only members whose names are contained in a political party’s membership register submitted to INEC at least 21 days before a primary, congress or convention are eligible to participate in the exercise.
Section 77(6) requires political parties to use the membership register submitted to INEC for their primaries, congresses and conventions, while Section 77(7) provides that a party that fails to submit its register within the prescribed period cannot field a candidate in an election.
Balogun urged INEC to audit the membership registers submitted by all registered political parties and compare them with the names of candidates presented for the 2027 elections.
He said candidates whose names are not contained in the relevant registers should be disqualified where they are found to have violated the provisions of the Electoral Act.
The committee argued that strict enforcement would help prevent disputes arising from alleged irregularities in party primaries and candidate nominations, while also reducing the likelihood of prolonged litigation after the elections.
The demand follows INEC’s disclosure that it received the Certified True Copy of the Supreme Court judgment on October 6. The commission said it was reviewing the judgment and its implications for the electoral process.
The Supreme Court ruling has therefore restored the statutory requirements governing party membership registers, but reports indicate that the judgment did not, by itself, automatically invalidate nominations already concluded. The practical application of the provisions to individual candidates remains an issue for INEC and potentially the courts.
