The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has defended its decision to challenge two recent Federal High Court judgments that questioned aspects of its timetable for the 2027 General Election, warning that allowing the rulings to stand could create confusion and disrupt the orderly conduct of elections nationwide.
INEC Chairman, Prof. Joash Amupitan, SAN, made the position known on Tuesday during the Second Quarterly Consultative Meeting with leaders of political parties held at the Commission’s headquarters in Abuja.
Addressing party leaders, Amupitan said the Commission had already filed appeals against the judgments and taken steps to obtain definitive interpretations from the appellate courts on what he described as critical constitutional and legal issues affecting electoral administration.
According to him, the court decisions touched on the extent of INEC’s powers to coordinate and regulate election-related activities under the Constitution and the Electoral Act.
“These judgments raise important legal questions concerning the extent of the Commission’s constitutional and statutory powers in coordinating and regulating electoral activities,” Amupitan said.
The INEC boss explained that in the case of Youth Party v. INEC (Suit No. FHC/ABJ/CS/517/2026), delivered on May 20, 2026, the Federal High Court questioned certain timelines contained in the Commission’s electoral timetable.
He added that a second judgment, delivered six days later in Social Democratic Party (SDP) v. INEC (Suit No. FHC/ABJ/CS/720/2026), upheld the Commission’s authority to issue an electoral timetable but struck down some timelines relating to the nomination and substitution of candidates.
Amupitan argued that election management involves a chain of interconnected activities that cannot be treated as isolated events.
He warned that without a harmonised electoral calendar, the Commission would face serious operational difficulties in executing its constitutional mandate.
“The activities contained in the timetable are not isolated events but interrelated operational processes essential to the orderly conduct of elections,” he said.
The INEC chairman listed several critical electoral activities for which the Electoral Act provides no specific timelines but which must nonetheless fit into a comprehensive election schedule.
These include the submission and verification of political parties’ membership registers, monitoring party primaries across the country, uploading primary election results to the Commission’s portal, printing ballot papers and result sheets, quality assurance checks, configuring BVAS machines, and complying with legal requirements for the inspection of election materials.
“The Commission therefore considers it imperative that all electoral activities be harmonised within a coherent and workable framework that promotes certainty, transparency, administrative efficiency and equal treatment of all political parties,” he stated.
Despite the ongoing legal battle, Amupitan assured political parties and Nigerians that preparations for the 2027 General Election remained firmly on course.
He stressed that the Commission would continue to operate strictly within the provisions of the Constitution and the Electoral Act while awaiting the outcome of the appeals.
Meanwhile, INEC disclosed that preparations for the June 20, 2026 Ekiti State governorship election had entered the final phase.
Amupitan revealed that the voters’ register for the election now contains 1,059,360 registered voters following the addition of 66,664 new registrants captured during the Continuous Voter Registration exercise.
He said the Commission also removed 2,103 cases of double registration in a bid to safeguard the integrity of the electoral process.
According to him, logistics deployment, technology configuration and the training of election personnel are progressing according to plan.
He further assured voters that all 2,445 polling units spread across the 16 local government areas of Ekiti State would open simultaneously at 8:30 a.m. on election day.
“We remain committed to the simultaneous opening of all polling units and the conduct of a credible election,” Amupitan said, expressing confidence in the Commission’s level of preparedness.
The development comes as political parties intensify preparations for both the Ekiti governorship election and the larger battle for power in the 2027 general elections, with INEC insisting that a clear and coordinated timetable remains the backbone of a credible electoral process.
