The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has excluded Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governorship candidates Ladi Adebutu in Ogun State and Isa Pantami in Gombe State, alongside their running mates, from its final list of candidates for the 2027 governorship elections.
The commission’s final list for Ogun State features 13 governorship candidates, while that of Gombe State contains 16 candidates. However, neither list includes a PDP candidate.
Adebutu, who previously emerged as the PDP’s governorship candidate in Ogun, is absent from the list alongside his running mate. Pantami, who recently won a fresh PDP governorship primary in Gombe, is also missing from the list with his deputy.
The documents do not state the reasons for the omission of the two candidates and their running mates.
In Ogun State, the list identifies Solomon Adeola as the governorship candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), with Kudirat Balogun as his running mate.
In Gombe State, Jamil Gwamna is listed as the APC governorship candidate, with Balah Adams as his running mate.
The omission of the PDP candidates comes amid developments surrounding the party’s governorship tickets in both states, particularly Pantami’s emergence from a fresh primary in Gombe.
INEC’s final lists contain details of the candidates, including their political parties, running mates, ages, genders, qualifications and other relevant remarks.
Meanwhile, a review of the commission’s website showed that the final list of governorship candidates for Rivers State had also been uploaded.
The Rivers list names Kingsley Chinda as the APC governorship candidate, Lulu-Briggs Dumo as the candidate of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), and Ejekwu Samuel as the PDP candidate.
