PDP to Sue INEC Over Omission of Dr Oluyede From Ekiti Governorship List

The Peoples Democratic Party has faulted the Independent National Electoral Commission over the exclusion of its governorship candidate from the list of contenders for the 2026 Ekiti State election, accusing the electoral body of bias and vowing to seek judicial intervention.

In a statement released on Tuesday on X by the party’s National Publicity Secretary, Comrade Ini Ememobong, the PDP described INEC’s action as “yet another confirmation of the biased disposition of the current leadership of the Commission towards the affairs of the Peoples Democratic Party.”

The party insisted that INEC was fully aware of, and actively involved in, its governorship primary process.

According to the PDP, the Commission monitored the exercise and later issued reports confirming that the primaries “complied with all extant laws and were democratically conducted.”

It added that following this, INEC provided the nomination portal codes used to access official forms, before allegedly blocking the code shortly before submission deadlines, forcing the party to submit documents manually, a step it said INEC acknowledged.

The PDP argued that given the “grave and far-reaching consequences” of excluding a properly nominated candidate, INEC ought to have exercised restraint by listing Dr Oluwole Oluyede, whom it described as its duly nominated flagbearer. It said this would have been “the safest and most lawful course of action” if the Commission had acted impartially.

The party further maintained that there was no competing submission challenging Dr Oluyede’s nomination and no court order barring INEC from recognising him. It stressed that the Commission’s own monitoring report supports the validity of the primaries and nomination process.

With INEC having proceeded otherwise, the PDP said it has initiated legal steps to compel the Commission to reverse its decision. While preparing for what it described as a difficult legal battle, the party urged INEC to remember Nigerians’ expectations that it must remain “independent, impartial, and neutral” in electoral matters.