Three political parties failed to submit the names of their presidential and vice-presidential candidates before the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) closed its nomination portal at 11:59 p.m. on Tuesday for the 2027 general election.

According to a senior INEC official who spoke anonymously because they were not authorised to comment publicly, the affected parties are the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA), the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) faction led by Nyesom Wike, and the Labour Party (LP) faction led by Nenadi Usman.

The official said nearly all registered political parties successfully completed their submissions before the deadline.

"Only about three political parties are yet to upload the names of their presidential and running mate candidates. They are APGA, the PDP (Wike faction) and the LP (Nenadi faction). Virtually every other party has filed its candidates," the source said.

INEC had earlier extended the deadline following requests from political parties and made it clear that no further extension would be granted. The extension moved the submission deadline from July 11 to midnight on July 14, giving parties additional time to upload the names and credentials of their presidential, Senate and House of Representatives candidates.

Major opposition parties met the deadline. The All Progressives Congress (APC) submitted President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and Vice President Kashim Shettima for re-election. The African Democratic Congress (ADC) submitted former Vice President Atiku Abubakar as its presidential candidate and Rotimi Amaechi as his running mate. The Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) submitted Peter Obi as its presidential candidate and Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso as his running mate.

INEC sources disclosed that some political parties submitted only the names of their presidential candidates without naming running mates.

Uncertainty remains in some states over National Assembly nominations. Reports indicate that candidate submissions in Benue, Kwara and Nasarawa states were still unclear as political parties finalised their filings on the portal.

Meanwhile, questions have emerged over whether the ADC's presidential and National Assembly candidates will be recognised by INEC following a Court of Appeal judgment delivered on Tuesday. The appellate court upheld an earlier ruling restraining INEC from recognising or participating in state congresses conducted by the leadership headed by former Senate President David Mark.

Despite the judgment, checks showed that INEC's portal still lists David Mark as the National Chairman of the ADC and former Osun State Governor Rauf Aregbesola as the party's National Secretary. Other members of the party's National Working Committee also remain listed on the commission's portal.

The development has added another layer to the leadership dispute within the ADC and could influence how INEC ultimately treats nominations submitted by the party.

The ADC has also called for the arrest and prosecution of Nafiu Bala Gombe, a former Deputy National Chairman of the party, over claims that he obtained INEC's access code and uploaded candidates on behalf of the party.

In a statement issued on Tuesday, ADC National Publicity Secretary Bolaji Abdullahi welcomed INEC's clarification that documents circulated by Gombe were forged and that his claims were false. The party urged the electoral commission to refer the matter to law enforcement agencies, arguing that such allegations should not go unaddressed.

Abdullahi maintained that the ADC had successfully uploaded the names and particulars of Atiku Abubakar and Rotimi Amaechi to the INEC nomination portal ahead of the deadline.

The Nigeria Democratic Congress also confirmed that it had completed its submission process. National Leader Henry Seriake Dickson announced that the party had been granted access to the INEC portal and had uploaded the names of its qualified candidates. He added that the party had filed an appeal and sought a stay of execution in relation to a recent court ruling affecting its status.

Separately, Abdulrahman Mohammed Takushara, National Chairman of the Nyesom Wike-backed PDP faction, announced that the party had successfully uploaded the names of its presidential candidate, running mate and National Assembly candidates to the INEC portal.

Legal proceedings involving the Accord Party's presidential ticket are also ongoing. A suit filed by Olawepo Gbenga-Hashim against the party and INEC was adjourned until Wednesday after fresh court documents were served on his legal team shortly before proceedings began.

Gbenga-Hashim is asking the court to recognise him as the Accord Party's lawful presidential candidate for the 2027 election, arguing that he emerged as the sole aspirant and winner of the party's presidential primary held on June 30, 2026. Alternatively, he is seeking an order for a fresh presidential primary if the court declines his request.

As of the time the nomination portal closed, it remained unclear whether his name had been submitted to INEC due to the ongoing court proceedings.

With the submission window now closed, INEC is expected to begin processing candidate nominations in line with the Electoral Act and its guidelines.