The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has released the final list of candidates for the January 16, 2027 presidential and National Assembly elections, confirming 18 presidential candidates and 4,860 candidates for the federal legislative seats.
The commission’s list, released on Saturday, showed that 4,878 candidates will contest the two elections, comprising 18 presidential candidates and 4,860 candidates for 109 senatorial and 360 House of Representatives seats.
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, Peter Obi and 15 other presidential candidates made the final list.
The ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) is fielding candidates for all available positions, while the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), African Democratic Congress (ADC), Nigerian Democratic Congress (NDC) and other parties are also contesting the elections.
The PDP has 103 senatorial candidates and 302 House of Representatives candidates. The ADC is fielding 107 senatorial candidates and 220 House of Representatives candidates, while the NDC has 103 senatorial candidates and 327 House of Representatives candidates.
The Allied Peoples Movement (APM) has 103 senatorial candidates and 232 House of Representatives candidates.
President Tinubu and Vice President Kashim Shettima will seek re-election on the APC platform.
They will face Atiku Abubakar of the ADC and Peter Obi of the NDC, among other candidates.
The final list also includes two female presidential candidates: Ada Elizabeth Fredrick Okwori of the National Democratic Party (NDP) and Nkem Esther Okereke of the National Rescue Movement (NRM).
Four parties—Young Progressive Party (YPP), Labour Party (LP), Democratic Leadership Alliance (DLA) and Allied Peoples Party (APP)—have female vice presidential candidates.
The New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP) is missing from the final presidential list.
The provisional list released two weeks earlier had Dikwa Suleiman Mohammed as the NNPP presidential candidate and Abubakar Isa as running mate. INEC did not state why their names were excluded from the final list.
The commission also recorded changes in the presidential tickets of some parties.
DLA replaced Samuel Memeh with Adebisi Amos Olusoji as its presidential candidate, while Abubakar Nafisat Usaka replaced Balogun Alex as running mate.
YPP replaced Chikwu Anita Zugwai with Peter Ada Agada as presidential candidate and Egeola Olawale Matins with Patience Ndidi Key as running mate.
The NRM, APM and Peoples Redemption Party (PRP) also changed their vice presidential candidates.
APM replaced Ibrahim Adamu Bala with Musa Lawal Daura, while NRM replaced Abubakar Adamu Bala with Sulaiman Nasir Mohammed. PRP replaced Baba Musa with Rabiu Kabiru.
Accord, All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) and Youth Party did not nominate presidential candidates before the close of nominations and are therefore absent from the presidential list.
The oldest presidential candidate is 79 years old, while the youngest is 35.
The 18 presidential candidates and their running mates are:
1. APC: Bola Tinubu / Kashim Shettima
2. ADC: Atiku Abubakar / Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi
3. NDC: Peter Gregory Obi / Musa Mohammed Rabiu Kwankwaso
4. LP: Sunday Chibuzo Okereke / Hajja Bintu Konto
5. PDP: Sandy Ojang Onor / Umaru Babangida
6. AA: Rufai Adekunle Omo-Aje / Shehu Hussaini
7. ADP: Aliyu Abbas-Bin / Chinazam Ike
8. APP: Kabiru Yusuf / Peace Egobia Ofordile
9. AAC: Omoyele Sowore / Haruna Garba Magashi
10. APM: Oluseyi Abiodun Makinde / Musa Lawal Daura
11. BP: Sunday Adenuga / Usman Turaki Mustapha
12. DLA: Moses Olusoji Adebisi / Nafisat Usaku Abubakar
13. NDP: Ada Elizabeth Fredrick Okwori / Uchenna Anthony Chukwuemeka
14. NRM: Nkem Esther Okereke / Nasir Muhammed Sulaiman
15. PRP: Donald Duke / Kabiru Rabiu
16. SDP: Adewole Ebenezer Adebayo / Usman Muhammed Bugaje
17. YPP: Peter Ada Agada / Patience Ndidi Key
18. ZLP: Daniel Daberechukwu Nwanyanwu / Hassan Khalid
Senate President Godswill Akpabio, Deputy Senate President Barau Jibrin, House of Representatives Speaker Tajudeen Abbas and Deputy Speaker Benjamin Kalu are among the serving principal officers cleared to contest the National Assembly elections.
All are seeking re-election on the APC platform.
Serving governors AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq of Kwara, Dapo Abiodun of Ogun, Hope Uzodimma of Imo, Muhammadu Inuwa Yahaya of Gombe, Mai Mala Buni of Yobe and Abdullahi Sule of Nasarawa are also contesting senatorial seats.
At least 12 former governors and a former deputy governor are on the senatorial list.
They include Orji Uzor Kalu of Abia North, Ifeanyi Okowa of Delta North, Adams Oshiomhole of Edo North, Mukhtar Ramalan Yero of Kaduna North, Ibrahim Shekarau of Kano Central and Muhammadu Adamu Aliero of Kebbi Central.
Others are Yahaya Bello of Kogi Central, Abubakar Sani-Bello of Niger North, Simon Bako Lalong of Plateau South, Aliyu Magatakarda Wamakko of Sokoto North, Abdullahi Yari of Zamfara West and former Lagos Deputy Governor Idiat Oluranti Adebule.
Senator Ali Ndume, who first entered the House of Representatives in 2003, is also on the ballot for Borno West. Former senator and human rights activist Shehu Sani will contest Kaduna Central.
Other notable senatorial candidates include Yemi Adaramodu, Mohammed Sani Musa, Paul Ikonne, Musa Abdulaziz Yar’Adua and Philip Tanimu Aduda.
Senate Leader Bamidele Opeyemi, Senate Whip Mohammed Tahir Mongunu, Deputy Chief Whip Onyekachi Nwaebonyi and Deputy House Leader Abdullahi Ali are also on the final list.
About 190 serving members of the House of Representatives and 54 senators have secured APC tickets to seek another term.
Some principal officers of the House will not return after losing their primaries, choosing not to recontest or missing from the final list.
They include House Leader Julius Ihonvbere, Bayelsa lawmaker Fred Agbedi, Deputy Chief Whip Ibrahim Ayokunle Isiaka, Deputy Minority Whip Abdulsamad Dasuki and Deputy Minority Whip George Ozodinobi.
Ihonvbere and Isiaka lost their primary elections. Agbedi opted to contest the senatorial election on the platform of a PDP faction led by Tanimu Turaki, while Dasuki will not seek re-election. Ozodinobi’s name was missing from the list of candidates in Anambra.
Only one of the six serving House members from Kwara State, Muktar Tolani Shagaya, made the final list.
Other experienced lawmakers who will not return include Nicholas Mutu of Delta, who has served in the House since 1999; Victor Nwokolo of Delta; Peter Akpatson of Edo; Igarewey Iduma Enwo of Ebonyi; Awaji Nombet Abiante of Rivers; and Khadijat Bukar Abba Ibrahim of Yobe.
Jonathan Gaza Gbefwi of Nasarawa and Kingsley Chinda of Rivers are contesting governorship elections in their respective states.
The final list shows that Kano has the highest number of House of Representatives candidates, with 251, followed by Lagos with 184, Kaduna with 151, Oyo with 151 and Rivers with 146.
Imo has 140 House candidates, while Bauchi has 123 and Benue 118.
For the Senate, Kano has 49 candidates, followed by Bayelsa and Imo with 45 each, Delta with 43, Anambra and Kogi with 42 each, and Rivers with 41.
Oyo State has 189 candidates from 17 political parties contesting federal legislative seats.
The state has 38 senatorial candidates and 151 House of Representatives candidates across 14 federal constituencies.
Six parties—APC, Action Democratic Party (ADP), ADC, APM, PRP and Social Democratic Party (SDP)—fielded candidates for all available senatorial and House seats in the state.
Only nine parties nominated candidates for all three senatorial seats: Accord, ADP, ADC, APC, APM, LP, NDC, PDP and SDP.
In Delta State, the INEC list comprises 43 senatorial candidates and 116 House of Representatives candidates.
The senatorial contest includes former governor Ifeanyi Okowa of the APC for Delta North, former Deputy Senate President Ovie Omo-Agege of the NDC for Delta Central, former Delta State House of Assembly Speaker Victor Ochei of the NDC for Delta North and incumbent senator Joel-Onowakpo Thomas of the APC for Delta South.
Other notable senatorial candidates include Ede Dafinone Omueya of the APC for Delta Central.
The House of Representatives list includes Ndudi Elumelu, Erhiatake Ibori-Suenu, Jonathan Ukodhiko, Beneth Osanebi, Francis Waive, Julius Pondi and Thomas Ereyitomi.
Gbajobor Guwor of the NDC is also contesting the Burutu federal constituency seat.
In Kwara State, Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq and serving Senator Salihu Mustapha will contest the Kwara Central senatorial seat on opposing platforms.
AbdulRazaq is the APC candidate, while Mustapha is contesting on the PDP platform.
The final list also shows that the NDC has no candidates in 10 senatorial districts across the country.
They are Bauchi South, Bauchi Central, Bauchi North, Benue North East, Ekiti South, Jigawa North East, Kaduna South, Katsina Central, Yobe East and Yobe North.
The release of the final list brings INEC’s candidate verification process to a close ahead of the January 16, 2027 presidential and National Assembly elections.
