2027: Court Orders the Deregistration of ADC, APP, AA, Accord, ZLP

The Federal High Court in Abuja has directed the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to deregister five political parties, including the African Democratic Congress (ADC), over their failure to meet constitutional electoral performance requirements.

The affected parties are the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Action Peoples Party (APP), Action Alliance (AA), Accord Party (AP), and Zenith Labour Party (ZLP).

The ruling was delivered by Justice Peter Lifu following a suit filed by the National Forum of Former Legislators, which challenged the continued recognition of the parties by INEC despite their alleged failure to satisfy constitutional benchmarks for retaining registration.

In the suit marked FHC/ABJ/CS/2637/2026, the plaintiffs argued that Section 225A of the 1999 Constitution (as amended), alongside provisions of the Electoral Act 2022 and INEC regulations, empowers the electoral commission to deregister political parties that fail to achieve stipulated electoral thresholds.

According to the plaintiffs, the affected parties neither secured the required 25 per cent of votes in a state during presidential elections nor won elective seats at the national, state, or local government levels. They maintained that the parties’ performances in the 2023 general elections and subsequent by-elections fell short of the constitutional requirements.

The forum contended that allowing such parties to remain registered undermines the integrity and credibility of Nigeria’s electoral process. It therefore urged the court to compel INEC to remove them from the register of political parties before preparations for the 2027 general elections progress further.

In addition to ordering their deregistration, the plaintiffs sought and obtained reliefs restraining the affected parties from participating in elections or engaging in political activities, including campaigns, rallies, and primary elections. The court also directed INEC not to accord them official recognition unless they fully comply with constitutional provisions.

The judgment is expected to have significant political implications ahead of the 2027 elections, particularly for politicians seeking elective offices under the platforms of the affected parties.