The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has published the final list of candidates for the 2027 presidential and National Assembly elections.
The publication brings more clarity to the race for the 109 seats in the Nigerian Senate ahead of the general election.
Politics Nigeria gathered that the final list contains candidates nominated by political parties to contest the various senatorial districts across the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory.
INEC published the list as part of preparations for the 2027 general election, with the Presidential and National Assembly elections scheduled for January 16, 2027.
The commission has been working with political parties to complete the nomination and verification process ahead of the polls.
The release follows weeks of political activity within the major parties.
Several sitting senators and prominent politicians secured return tickets, while others lost their party nominations during the primary and appeal processes.
The All Progressives Congress (APC), African Democratic Congress (ADC), Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) and Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) feature prominently across the senatorial districts contained in the list.
Other political parties also appear in some constituencies.
The final stage of the nomination process has already produced a number of major political changes.
Some politicians who initially secured party tickets were later replaced following internal appeals and reviews.
In the APC, for instance, the party reviewed several National Assembly nominations after complaints from aspirants.
The review affected senatorial districts in states including Kogi, Benue, Taraba, Ondo, Abia, Niger, Kwara, Kaduna and Ebonyi.
Among the notable changes was the restoration of Senator Emmanuel Udende as the APC candidate for Benue North-East, while Prince Paul Ikonne emerged as the party’s candidate for Abia South.
Former Benue State Governor Gabriel Suswam was among the politicians affected by the changes after losing the APC ticket that he had initially secured.
In Delta North, former Governor Ifeanyi Okowa is listed as the APC candidate, while Senator Ned Nwoko is not on the final list.
Former Gombe State Governor Danjuma Goje is also absent from the list after losing the APC ticket for Gombe Central to Mohammed Ahmed.
The development has added fresh competition to the 2027 Senate race, with several districts expected to witness closely fought contests.
The list also shows instances where some parties did not present candidates in particular senatorial districts.
Nigerian Senate
Below is the list of the candidates by senatorial district:
INEC Final List of Senatorial Candidates for 2027 Elections:
1. Abia North APC: Kalu Orji Uzor ADC: Okoronkwo Ikechukwu Bishop Godswill NDC: Nkole Uko Ndukwe PDP: Udeachara Jude
2. Abia Central APC: Atuma Emeka ADC: Austine Okwudiri Akobundu NDC: Nkechi Nwaogu PDP: Ogu Bob
3. Abia South APC: Ikonne Prince Paul ADC: Isiguzor Chukwuemeka Victor NDC: Enyinna Kasarachi Michael PDP: Onuoha Ishmael Chinyere LP: Enyinnaya Abaribe
4. Adamawa North APC: Umaru Ahmadu ADC: Iya Umar NDC: Abubakar Rabiu PDP: Lawan Mohammed Ribado
5. Adamawa South APC: Tangwami Felix Bilishan ADC: Binos Dauda Yaroe NDC: Peter Fwa Barata PDP: Ahmed Hassan
6. Adamawa Central APC: Salihu Mustapha ADC: Ibrahim Mustapha NDC: Ahmed Abdullahi Musa PDP: Attahamohammed Ibrahim
7. Akwa Ibom North East APC: Bassey Aniekan Etim ADC: Sunday Etim Umoren NDC: Afia Ekere S. PDP: Udobang Cletus Kufre
8. Akwa Ibom North West APC: Akpabio Godswill ADC: Akpabio Patience Christopher Ibanga Obot NDC: Inemeh Patty Etete PDP: —
9. Akwa Ibom South APC: Akpan Ekong Sampson ADC: Louis Paul Udoh NDC: Frank Okon Daniel PDP: Isong Etim
10. Anambra North APC: Nnalue Chimzobam Kingsley ADC: Udedibia Sunday Ikenna NDC: Nwoye Tony Okechukwu PDP: Oliatachinenye Edith
11. Anambra Central APC: Ekwunife Uche Lilian ADC: Nwobu Geoffery Ndubuisi NDC: Umeh Victor Chukwunonyelum PDP: Ughamadu Lawrence Chijioke
The APC, ADC and PDP expected to contest all 469 National Assembly seats comprising 109 Senate seats and 360 House of Representatives seats.
The NDC has also been preparing candidates for the Senate and House of Representatives races.
The presidential and National Assembly elections are scheduled for January 16, 2027, according to INEC’s current timetable.
The release of the final list means the names of those seeking election to the Senate are now before voters as the parties move closer to the 2027 elections.
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has omitted former Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Isa Pantami, from its final list of governorship candidates for Gombe State ahead of the February 6, 2027 election.
Politics Nigeria reports that the commission released a list of 16 cleared candidates for the election, but Pantami’s name was missing despite his earlier inclusion in the provisional list published on August 29.
Among the candidates on the final list are 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 include 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).
Pantami’s exclusion comes amid a series of legal disputes over his emergence as the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governorship candidate in the state.
The former minister had initially sought the APC governorship ticket but left the party after it settled for Gwamna as its consensus candidate. He subsequently joined the PDP and emerged as the party’s flag bearer through voice affirmation at its governorship primary.
However, a Federal High Court sitting in Gombe nullified his initial emergence on May 26, following a challenge to the primary process.
The court ordered a fresh primary election, which Pantami won on September 29 with 2,054 votes, defeating Khamisu Ahmed Mailantarki and Usman Aliyu Garry.
Garry had challenged Pantami’s emergence, arguing that the required primary election was not properly conducted before the former minister was declared the party’s candidate.
Despite winning the court-ordered rerun, Pantami’s eligibility remained in doubt following the Supreme Court’s September 24, 2026 judgment on provisions of the Electoral Act 2026 governing political party membership registers and candidate eligibility.
The Supreme Court affirmed the constitutionality of Sections 77(5), 77(6) and 77(7) of the Electoral Act 2026 and upheld INEC’s revised timetable and schedule of activities for the 2027 elections.
The provisions bar political parties from fielding candidates whose names were not included in the membership registers submitted to INEC within the stipulated period.
INEC has maintained that parties found to have violated the requirements will not be permitted to participate in the elections through candidates whose nominations breach the law.
Mohammed Haruna, an INEC national commissioner in charge of information and voter education, said the commission would not allow parties to replace candidates affected by the provisions.
Haruna made the clarification during an appearance on Trust TV’s programme on Wednesday evening, explaining that allowing substitutions would enable political parties to benefit from their own violations.
INEC Chairman, Professor Joash Ojo Amupitan
He cited previous disputes involving Zamfara and Plateau states to illustrate the consequences of parties failing to comply with electoral requirements.
“It’s like you committed an offence. And then, you come and benefit from it,” Haruna said.
He added that allowing parties to substitute candidates in such circumstances would amount to permitting them to benefit from an offence they had committed.
Haruna also indicated that the commission expected to make a definite pronouncement on the implications of the Supreme Court judgment by the following Tuesday.