# Nigeria PDP candidate submission dispute

> Live situation record from CLSTR: https://clstr.news/situations/nigeria-pdp-candidate-submission-dispute
> Updated: 2026-07-31T07:48:07.000Z. Sources: 15. Developments: 2.

In late July 2026 the Turaki‑led interim National Working Committee of Nigeria’s Peoples Democratic Party reported uploading most of its governorship and state‑assembly candidates to INEC’s portal. After INEC refused to issue electronic submission codes, the faction manually submitted a full slate, including former President Goodluck Jonathan as its 2027 presidential candidate. INEC acknowledged receipt but rejected the manual filing, insisting that all parties must use the electronic portal and stating that the manual approach breaches the Electoral Act 2026. INEC’s director of voter education, Victoria Ita‑Messi, reiterated the procedural requirement. The Turaki faction maintains that it complied with the law, warns that any alternative list published by INEC would undermine confidence, and vows to pursue all constitutional, legal and democratic avenues. The dispute continues amid the party’s lack of a court‑recognised National Working Committee and ongoing legal challenges over INEC’s recognition of the interim leadership.

## Claims

- INEC rejected the manual submission, stating that candidates must be uploaded through its electronic portal. (disputed by 2 sources)
- The Turaki faction says it complied with the Electoral Act 2026 in submitting candidates manually. (disputed by 2 sources)
- The Turaki‑led Interim National Working Committee of the PDP manually submitted the list of candidates, including Goodluck Jonathan, to INEC for the 2027 election. (corroborated by 10 sources)
- INEC acknowledged receipt of the manual submission. (corroborated by 10 sources)
- The faction says it will exhaust all constitutional, legal and democratic avenues to protect the PDP from being “hijacked” or annexed to the ruling party. (corroborated by 10 sources)
- INEC denied the Turaki‑led faction access codes for electronic candidate submission. (corroborated by 9 sources)
- The Turaki‑led faction claims to be the authentic PDP leadership after a Supreme Court judgment left the party without a legally recognised National Working Committee. (corroborated by 9 sources)
- The faction accuses INEC of institutional bias and warns it will take legal action if INEC publishes a candidate list different from the one it submitted. (corroborated by 9 sources)
- The faction has appealed a Federal High Court judgment that declined to compel INEC to recognise the interim leadership. (corroborated by 8 sources)
- The faction issued certificates of return for about 1,470 candidates (1 presidential, 28 governorship, 109 senatorial, 360 House of Representatives, 993 State Assembly). (single source)

## Timeline

### 2026-07-31: Goodluck Jonathan’s candidacy rejected as PDP faction’s manual submission sparks INEC dispute

The Turaki‑led PDP faction manually submitted Goodluck Jonathan as its 2027 presidential candidate; INEC rejected the filing, insisting on electronic submission and denying access codes, while the faction vows

14 sources. https://clstr.news/cluster/pdp-faction-submits-goodluck-jonathans-name-to-inec-for-2027-election

### 2026-07-25: Nigeria's PDP uploads over 70% of 2027 election candidates

Nigeria’s PDP has uploaded over 70% of its 2027 election candidates after fixing portal glitches, while the Turaki faction looks to the courts to resolve internal disputes.

4 sources. https://clstr.news/cluster/nigerias-pdp-uploads-over-70-of-2027-election-candidates

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Cite as: Nigeria PDP candidate submission dispute. CLSTR, https://clstr.news/situations/nigeria-pdp-candidate-submission-dispute