Gombe 2027: INEC updates governorship list, adds Pantami, two others

From Abdulrazaq Mungadi, Gombe

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has increased the number of governorship candidates for the 2027 Gombe State election from 16 to 19, following the inclusion of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and former Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Professor Isa Ali Pantami.

The updated list also features candidates from two other political parties, the African Action Congress (AAC) and the Young Progressives Party (YPP), which were absent from the initial list published on 10 October 2026.

The development comes after INEC reviewed complaints arising from the publication of the final lists of governorship and State Houses of Assembly candidates, following petitions from political parties and candidates over omissions and alleged irregularities.

In a statement issued on 29 October and signed by the Chairman of its Information and Voter Education Committee, Mohammed Kudu Haruna, the commission said it received 69 petitions from 12 political parties across 26 states concerning governorship candidates.

Of the petitions, 41 were successful, while 28 were rejected after the commission reviewed the complaints, relevant records and applicable legal provisions.

INEC explained that the complaints bordered on the omission of political parties, the wrongful inclusion of candidates whose names were absent from membership registers submitted by their parties, and alleged multiple nominations.

The commission said it approved the inclusion of candidates and political parties whose complaints were found to have merit. It also removed some candidates whose names had been wrongly published after verifying that they were not on their parties’ membership registers.

For the State Houses of Assembly elections, INEC received 61 petitions from 11 political parties across 11 states. Twenty-five succeeded, while 36 were rejected.

The commission said the affected candidates, political parties and states would be reflected in the updated lists on its website, assuring Nigerians of its commitment to transparency and the credibility of the electoral process.

Pantami’s inclusion reverses his exclusion from the 10 October list, which featured 16 governorship candidates but had no PDP representative.

The development followed a fresh PDP governorship primary conducted in September after a court nullified his earlier emergence as the party’s candidate.

INEC’s subsequent clarification confirmed that Pantami’s petition had succeeded, although the commission said his inclusion remained subject to the outcome of pending court cases.

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