Political parties are recording varying levels of progress in uploading the particulars of their candidates to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) portal ahead of the July 11 deadline for the 2027 general elections.
While major political parties, including the All Progressives Congress (APC), Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), and African Democratic Congress (ADC), say they are making steady progress without major setbacks, some smaller parties have reported technical challenges that could affect timely compliance.
Apart from technical issues, some political parties are still finalising the selection of governorship running mates, while others are resolving disputes arising from their primary elections before completing the nomination process.
The National Chairman of the Because Of Our Tomorrow (BOOT) Party, Sonny Adenuga, disclosed that the party had experienced difficulties using the INEC candidate nomination portal after receiving its access code last week.
According to him, despite the challenges, the party remains committed to meeting the commission’s deadline.
“We are complying as usual and will upload all our candidates before the deadline,” Adenuga said, adding that the party had already informed INEC of the technical problems encountered while using the portal.
The Labour Party (LP), however, said it had largely completed the upload process after initially facing minor technical issues.
The party’s National Publicity Secretary, Ken Asogwa, explained that the earlier difficulties were caused mainly by inconsistencies between candidate details submitted by the party and information already stored in INEC’s automated system.
He said instances where candidates’ names were entered in a different order from INEC’s records often resulted in temporary rejection by the portal, but noted that once the information matched the commission’s records, the upload process became seamless.
Asogwa added that beyond the initial technical issues, the party had not experienced any other significant challenges.
The All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) declined to comment on the ongoing upload process or the July 11 deadline.
INEC had earlier opened its Candidate Nomination Portal for political parties to submit Form EC9 and other required documents for candidates contesting the presidential, governorship, National Assembly and State House of Assembly elections.
The Action Democratic Party (ADP) also confirmed that it was complying with INEC’s directives.
National Chairman of the party, Engr. Yabagi Yusuf Sani, said the ADP was making steady progress and remained on course to meet the commission’s deadline.
Similarly, the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) said it had encountered little or no challenges while uploading its candidates’ particulars.
The party’s National Publicity Secretary, Osa Director, expressed confidence that the exercise would be completed before the deadline, adding that the party’s reconciliation committee and national leadership were actively resolving outstanding issues arising from its primaries.
He appreciated party members for their patience and cooperation throughout the process.
The National Secretary of the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP), Dipo Olayoku, said he was not in a position to comment on the progress of the upload exercise despite the party receiving access to the INEC portal.
The ruling APC said it had experienced no difficulty interacting with the commission’s portal and that the upload of candidates’ particulars was progressing smoothly.
A senior party official, who spoke anonymously, said the APC remained on schedule to complete the exercise before July 11.
Special Adviser on Media and Information Strategy to the APC National Chairman, Abimbola Tooki, reaffirmed the party’s commitment to conducting a transparent, fair and credible nomination process in line with its constitution, guidelines and decisions of its relevant organs.
The ongoing upload follows the APC’s submission of a revised list of candidates to INEC after the party’s National Working Committee removed six senatorial candidates and 19 House of Representatives candidates who had emerged during the May 2026 primaries.
The party had earlier disclosed that it received more than 700 petitions from dissatisfied members over the primary election process, stating that its immediate priority was ensuring the successful upload of candidates before the INEC deadline.
Despite the controversies surrounding the review process, several prominent APC members, including four serving governors seeking Senate seats, retained their positions on the party’s final list submitted to INEC.
Meanwhile, both the PDP and ADC expressed confidence that they were making steady progress in the nomination process.
PDP National Publicity Secretary, Mohammed Haruna Jungudo, said the party had encountered no technical, legal or administrative obstacles since the exercise commenced.
He dismissed reports suggesting irregularities in the nomination process, insisting there had been no unlawful substitution of candidates.
Jungudo urged party members and candidates to remain focused and ignore individuals circulating fake nomination forms or attempting to create unnecessary distractions.
He also assured members that ongoing legal proceedings involving the party would not affect its preparations for the 2027 general elections.
On its part, ADC National Publicity Secretary, Bolaji Abdullahi, said the party had successfully uploaded the names of its presidential and vice-presidential candidates and was on course to complete submissions for National Assembly candidates before the deadline.
He described the exercise as smooth, saying the party had not encountered any technical, legal or administrative challenges since the upload process began.
Political Parties Record Mixed Progress as INEC Candidate Upload Deadline Nears
