The Federal High Court in Abuja has directed the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to deregister the African Democratic Congress (ADC) and four other political parties for failing to meet constitutional electoral performance requirements.
The affected parties are the ADC, Action Peoples Party (APP), Action Alliance (AA), Accord Party (AP), and Zenith Labour Party (ZLP).
The ruling was delivered by Justice Peter Lifu in a suit filed by the National Forum of Former Legislators, marked FHC/ABJ/CS/2637/2026.
The plaintiffs asked the court to determine whether INEC is constitutionally obligated to remove political parties that fail to satisfy the performance benchmarks outlined in Section 225A of the 1999 Constitution (as amended), as well as provisions of the Electoral Act 2022 and INEC regulations.
According to the former lawmakers, the five political parties consistently failed to meet the constitutional criteria required to retain their registration.
These requirements include securing at least 25 percent of votes in a state during a presidential election or winning at least one elective position at the national, state, or local government level.
They argued that the parties performed poorly in both the 2023 general elections and subsequent by-elections conducted by INEC, failing to win seats across key levels of government.
The plaintiffs maintained that allowing the parties to remain registered despite their poor electoral performance was unlawful and detrimental to the integrity of Nigeria’s electoral system.
In their suit, they urged the court to declare that INEC has a legal duty to deregister political parties that fail to meet constitutional standards.
They also requested that the electoral commission be compelled to remove the parties from its register before preparations for the 2027 general elections progress further.
Additionally, the plaintiffs sought orders preventing the affected parties from participating in elections or engaging in political activities such as campaigns, rallies, and primary elections.
They also asked the court to restrain INEC from recognizing or dealing with the parties in any official capacity unless they fully comply with constitutional requirements.
The judgment could have significant political implications ahead of the 2027 elections, potentially affecting the eligibility of candidates seeking to contest under the affected parties, including former Vice President Atiku Abubakar.
