The race for the 2027 general election has officially commenced, with the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) confirming that nine registered political parties have collected access codes to upload the particulars of their candidates for the Presidential and National Assembly elections.
INEC National Commissioner for Voter Education and Publicity, Mohammed Haruna, disclosed this in Abuja, stating that the political parties had obtained the codes as of the close of business on Monday.
“As of close of work on Monday, nine political parties have collected the access code for the national elections,” Haruna said.
According to INEC, the parties are Accord (A), Action Alliance (AA), African Democratic Congress (ADC), All Progressives Congress (APC), Labour Party (LP), National Democratic Congress (NDC), National Democratic Party (NDP), Peoples Redemption Party (PRP) and Social Democratic Party (SDP).
Haruna explained that it is the responsibility of every political party participating in the elections to visit the Commission’s headquarters to collect the access code, stressing that INEC will not distribute the codes to party secretariats.
He added that any representative collecting a code on behalf of a political party must present a letter of authorisation from the party leadership.
INEC has already activated its Candidate Nomination Portal (CNP) for the 2027 general election. Political parties are expected to submit nomination forms for Presidential and National Assembly candidates between June 27 and July 11, 2026.
The nomination window for Governorship and State House of Assembly candidates will run from July 18 to August 8, 2026, in line with the Commission’s election timetable.
Haruna also urged political parties to complete the nomination process early and avoid waiting until the final hours before the deadline.
He noted that although INEC had extended the submission deadline from the close of business to midnight on the final day, parties that delay their submissions would bear responsibility for any challenges encountered.
The collection of nomination portal access codes by the nine political parties marks the beginning of preparations for the 2027 elections, as political activities gradually gather momentum across the country.
