The Supreme Court on Thursday upheld the appeal filed by the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, against a Court of Appeal judgement that nullified key provisions of the Electoral Act 2026 on political party membership registers and candidate nomination.
A seven-member panel led by Justice Adamu Jauro set aside the appellate court’s July 16 judgement in favour of the Zenith Labour Party, ZLP, and restored the decision of the Federal High Court, Abuja.
The apex court held that the challenged provisions do not conflict with the 1999 Constitution and awarded N2 million in costs against the ZLP.
The court also delivered separate judgements in appeals filed by the Social Democratic Party, SDP, and the Youth Party, YP, against INEC.
In the SDP case, the Supreme Court heard the appeal on its merits before dismissing it. In the YP case, the court upheld INEC’s preliminary objection and struck out the appeal after finding that it was filed one day outside the prescribed time limit.
The legal dispute involving the ZLP began at the Federal High Court in Abuja, where the party challenged Sections 77,5, 77,6, 77,7, and 84,2, of the Electoral Act 2026.
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Sections 77,5, 77,6, 77,7, set out requirements for political parties’ membership registers, while Section 84,2, provides for direct primaries or consensus as methods for nominating candidates for elective positions.
The ZLP argued that the provisions were inconsistent with the 1999 Constitution and amounted to unconstitutional interference in the internal affairs of political parties.
The party relied, among other provisions, on Sections 221 and 222 of the Constitution, which provides the constitutional framework for political parties. Justice Mohammed Umar of the Federal High Court dismissed the suit on May 5, 2026.
Dissatisfied with the decision, the ZLP appealed to the Abuja Division of the Court of Appeal. On July 16, 2026, the appellate court allowed the appeal in part and voided provisions of the Electoral Act relating to party membership registers and candidate nomination.
INEC subsequently approached the Supreme Court to challenge the Court of Appeal’s decision. In its judgment on Thursday, the apex court held that the disputed provisions were not inconsistent with the 1999 Constitution and consequently restored the Federal High Court’s judgement.
The ruling effectively reinstates the provisions governing the submission and use of political party membership registers, as well as the use of direct primaries or consensus for candidate nomination.
NAN
