Kwara, Rivers, Oyo unveil candidates as INEC begins publication of particulars
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has commenced the display of the personal particulars of candidates nominated by political parties for the 2027 governorship and State House of Assembly elections.
The exercise commenced on Saturday, August 29, 2026, as part of INEC’s preparations for the February 6, 2027 governorship and State Assembly elections.
The governorship election will take place in 28 states, while elections into the State Houses of Assembly will be conducted across all 36 states.
INEC’s publication is designed to allow political parties, candidates and members of the public to examine the information submitted by political parties and raise objections where necessary.
28 states to elect governors in 2027
The states scheduled for governorship elections are:
- Abia
- Adamawa
- Akwa Ibom
- Bauchi
- Benue
- Borno
- Cross River
- Delta
- Ebonyi
- Enugu
- Gombe
- Jigawa
- Kaduna
- Kano
- Katsina
- Kebbi
- Kwara
- Lagos
- Nasarawa
- Niger
- Ogun
- Oyo
- Plateau
- Rivers
- Sokoto
- Taraba
- Yobe
- Zamfara
INEC’s timetable fixes the governorship and State House of Assembly elections for February 6, 2027.
Eight states will not elect governors in 2027
The eight states excluded from the February 2027 governorship election are:
- Anambra
- Bayelsa
- Edo
- Ekiti
- Imo
- Kogi
- Ondo
- Osun
These states operate on different electoral cycles because their previous governorship elections were conducted at different times.
LATEST CANDIDATE FIELD BY STATE
The following is the latest consolidated candidate field available, with party affiliations. It should not be interpreted as a substitute for an official INEC final list where INEC has not yet publicly displayed the particular state list.
ABIA
- Alex Otti — LP
- Ceekay Igara — LP
- Eric Opah — APC
- Kelechi Anosike — PDP
The current candidate tracker records four names in the Abia race.
ADAMAWA
- Ahmed Galadima — APC
- Christopher Nathaniel — SDP
- Maurice Vunobolki — PDP
- Omar Suleiman — ADC
- Wafarinyi Theman Dalatu — YPP
Five candidates are currently tracked in Adamawa.
AKWA IBOM
- Umo Bassey Eno — APC
- John James Akpanudoedehe — ADC
- Samuel Coffie Emeni — PDP
- Jeremiah Akpan — DLA
- Michael Bush — LP
Five candidates are currently tracked.
BAUCHI
- Ibrahim Muhammad Kashim — NDC
- Mohammed Abdullahi Abubakar — APC
- Mohammed Aliyu — LP
- Umar Shehu Buba — PRP
- Usman Supi — PDP
- Yakubu Adamu — APM
Six candidates are currently tracked.
BENUE
- Hyacinth Alia — APC
- Herman Iorwase Hembe — ADC
- Michael Aondoakaa — PDP
- Ochigbo Mathew Sunday — NDP
- Sebastine Hon — SDP
- Titus Tamango Belamo — LP
Six candidates are currently tracked.
BORNO
- Babagana Buhari — ADC
- Ibrahim Abba Gana — PDP
- Mustapha Gubio — APC
Three candidates are currently tracked.
CROSS RIVER
- Arthur Jarvis — PDP
- Emmanuel Friday — LP
- Bassey Edet Otu — APC
Three candidates are currently tracked.
DELTA
- Barry Avotu Johnson — LP
- Emmanuel Unuafe — ADC
- Joshua Denila — YP
- Nkwoala Emeka — ZLP
- Sheriff Oborevwori — APC
- Great Ogboru — ADC
Six candidates are currently tracked.
EBONYI
- Ifeanyi Chukwuma Odii — PDP
- Francis Nwifuru — APC
- Splendor Oko Eze — LP
Three candidates are currently tracked.
ENUGU
- Dona Nwogbo — PDP
- James Ene Nwannaji — NDC
- Peter Mbah — APC
- Geoffrey Uchechukwu Nnaji — PDP
Four candidates are currently tracked.
GOMBE
- Isa Ali Ibrahim Pantami — PDP
- Jamilu Isyaku Gwamna — APC
Two candidates are currently tracked.
JIGAWA
- Mustapha Sule Lamido — PDP
- Umar Namadi — APC
Two candidates are currently tracked.
KADUNA
- Aminu Abdulfatah — PRP
- Auwal Tafoki — LP
- Danjuma Laah — NDC
- Mohammed Ashiru Isa — ADC
- Uba Sani — APC
- Shehu Bawa — PDP
Six candidates are currently tracked.
KANO
- Aminu Abdussalam Gwarzo — NDC
- Mohammad Raji — LP
- Muhammad Bello Dalhatu — PDP
- Abba Kabir Yusuf — APC
Four candidates are currently tracked.
KATSINA
- Garba Yakubu Lado — PDP
- Rabe Katsina — LP
- Dikko Umar Radda — APC
Three candidates are currently tracked.
KEBBI
- Abubakar Malami — ADC
- Nasir Idris — APC
Two candidates are currently tracked.
KWARA
The candidate tracker currently records:
- Yakubu Danladi-Salihu — APC
- Bolakale Kawu — PDP
- Ajibade Adekunle — LP
- Zakari Mohammed — ADC
However, INEC’s actual Kwara office display reported on August 29 contains 12 candidates, making the Kwara case an important example of why a live media tracker should not be presented as the complete INEC list. INEC’s displayed APC candidate is Yakubu Danladi-Salihu, while PDP’s candidate is Bolakale Kawu and SDP’s is Apaokagi Salahudeen.
The 12 candidates publicly reported from the INEC Kwara display are:
- Yakubu Danladi-Salihu — APC
- Bolakale Kawu — PDP
- Apaokagi Salahudeen — SDP
- Adeshina Ajisafe — ADP
- Seko Jubril Gure — Accord
- Yinka Ajia — NDC
- Omotoso Bamidele Olaitan — APP
- Kolo Ezekiel — AA
- Oluwole Tolu — APM
- Decean Shola Victor Abioye — NDP
- Sule Ajayi — APGA
- Lamidi Isiaka Akanni — NNPP
PUNCH reported that the 12 candidates and their running mates were displayed at the INEC office in Ilorin on August 29.
LAGOS
The current field includes:
- Adedeji Doherty — PDP
- Adeyemi Abiola Roseline — APP
- Femi Olaniyi — SDP
- Funso Doherty — NDC
- Laja Adeoye — APM
- Naheem Balogun — NDC
- Obafemi Hamzat — APC
- Oluwadamola Adesoca Sol Nuyi — AAC
- Gbadebo Rhodes-Vivour — ADC
- Robert Sowore — Accord
Ten candidates are currently tracked in Lagos.
NASARAWA
- Ahmed Aliyu Wadada — APC
- Emmanuel David Ombugadu — PDP
- Gaza Jonathan Gbefwi — LP
- Mohammed Abubakar Adamu — SDP
- Nuhu Angbazo — ADC
Five candidates are currently tracked.
NIGER
- Mohammed Kpautagi — ADC
- Mohammed Umaru Bago — APC
Two candidates are currently tracked.
OGUN
- Adekunle Adenuga — BP
- Solomon Adeola — APC
- Biodun Ogundipe — ADC
- Bolaji Odusina — NDC
- Shuaib Olaniyi Okewole — Accord
- Ladi Adebutu — PDP
Six candidates are currently tracked.
OYO
- Abimbola Adekanmbi — APM
- Sharafadeen Alli — APC
- Gbemileke Alagbe — ADC
- Hazeem Gbolarumi — PDP
- Oriyomi Hamzat — Accord
- Taofeek Adegoke — ADC
- Yusuf Akim Adebola — NDC
Seven names are currently tracked.
Importantly, INEC has displayed Olooye Adegboyega Taofeek Adegoke as the ADC governorship candidate in Oyo State, following a dispute over the party’s ticket.
PLATEAU
- John Sunday Sura — ADC
- Kefas Ropshik — PDP
- Margaret Inusa Yahaya — SDP
- Caleb Mutfwang — APC
- Sunday Garba Biggs — PDP
Five candidates are currently tracked.
RIVERS
The latest state-level reports are particularly important because INEC’s Rivers office displayed 19 governorship candidates on August 29.
Among those reported are:
- Kingsley Ogundu Chinda — APC
- Dumo Lulu-Briggs — NDC
- Farah Dagogo — ADC
- Gabriel Pidomson — ADC
- Nature Dumale Kieghe — PRP
- Nuka Nwigbo — LP
- Richard Enyinha Victor — PDP
- Sam Ejekwu — PDP
The broader INEC display reported by New Telegraph contains 19 names, including candidates from Accord, APP, ADP, BP, DLA, NRM, SDP, ZLP, APGA, AAC, AA, NNPP, YPP and APM.
SOKOTO
- Abdulrrahim Chindo — LP
- Aliyu Ahmed — APC
- Dan Iya Manir Muhammad — ADC
- Mustapha Shehu — PDP
Four candidates are currently tracked.
TARABA
- Aboki Stephen Bayonga — DLA
- Emmanuel Bwacha — PDP
- Agbu Kefas — APC
- Usman Danjuma Shiddi — APGA
Four candidates are currently tracked.
YOBE
- Abdullahi Sharif — PDP
- Abdullahi Usman Maigida — PDP
- Baba Malam Wali — APC
- Kassim Gana Geidam — ADC
Four candidates are currently tracked.
ZAMFARA
- Ahmed Yahuza — LP
- Hamza Musa Mai Bulawus — SDP
- Dauda Lawal — APC
- Mahadi Aliyu Gusau — ADC
Four candidates are currently tracked.
MAJOR POLITICAL PARTIES IN THE 2027 GOVERNORSHIP RACE
The current nationwide tracker shows the APC and PDP with the largest number of governorship nominees, followed by the ADC and Labour Party.
The 127-name nationwide field currently tracked is distributed among 18 parties as follows:
Party| Candidates tracked
APC| 28
PDP| 28
ADC| 21
LP| 16
NDC| 9
SDP| 6
APM| 3
PRP| 3
Accord| 3
DLA| 2
BP| 1
APP| 1
YP| 1
ZLP| 1
NDP| 1
AAC| 1
APGA| 1
YPP| 1
Total| 127
The nationwide tracker says 127 candidates are being followed across 28 states, although its individual state pages do not yet reflect every name in that nationwide count.
APC’S 28 GOVERNORSHIP CANDIDATES
The APC has nominated candidates in all 28 states holding governorship elections.
Among the prominent APC candidates are:
- Abia — Eric Opah
- Adamawa — Ahmed Galadima
- Akwa Ibom — Umo Eno
- Bauchi — Mohammed Abdullahi Abubakar
- Benue — Hyacinth Alia
- Borno — Mustapha Gubio
- Cross River — Bassey Otu
- Delta — Sheriff Oborevwori
- Ebonyi — Francis Nwifuru
- Enugu — Peter Mbah
- Gombe — Jamilu Gwamna
- Jigawa — Umar Namadi
- Kaduna — Uba Sani
- Kano — Abba Yusuf
- Katsina — Dikko Radda
- Kebbi — Nasir Idris
- Kwara — Yakubu Danladi-Salihu
- Lagos — Obafemi Hamzat
- Nasarawa — Ahmed Aliyu Wadada
- Niger — Umaru Bago
- Ogun — Solomon Adeola
- Oyo — Sharafadeen Alli
- Plateau — Caleb Mutfwang
- Rivers — Kingsley Chinda
- Sokoto — Ahmad Aliyu
- Taraba — Agbu Kefas
- Yobe — Baba Malam Wali
- Zamfara — Dauda Lawal
The APC previously uploaded candidates for 27 of the 28 governorship contests before the nomination deadline, with the party resolving disputes surrounding several of its primaries.
WHAT INEC’S AUGUST 29 DISPLAY MEANS
The display of the EC9 forms is an important stage in the electoral process.
It allows the public to examine information submitted by political parties, including candidates’ names, political parties and personal and educational particulars.
However, the display should not be confused with a permanent guarantee that a candidate can never be removed from the ballot.
Court judgments, lawful substitutions and other developments under the Electoral Act can still affect candidates.
The Oyo ADC controversy demonstrates why this distinction matters. INEC’s display of Adegoke’s EC9 form provided a clear indication of the candidate submitted to the commission, but any subsequent court proceedings could still have electoral consequences.
2027 ELECTION TIMELINE
According to INEC’s current timetable:
January 16, 2027: Presidential and National Assembly elections.
February 6, 2027: Governorship and State House of Assembly elections.
The eight off-cycle states — Anambra, Bayelsa, Edo, Ekiti, Imo, Kogi, Ondo and Osun — will not participate in the February 2027 governorship election.
IMPORTANT UPDATE FOR READERS
As of August 29, 2026, INEC has begun displaying the candidates’ particulars, but a single consolidated official INEC webpage containing every governorship candidate from all 28 states was not available in the material accessible today.
Consequently, this report distinguishes between candidates publicly displayed by INEC in individual states and the broader nationwide candidate field compiled from party nominations and sourced election reporting.
