2027: INEC Awaits Court Papers After Sacking of David Mark’s ADC Leadership, Atiku’s Candidacy

According to a report by The Punch on Sunday, November 8, 2026, the political landscape ahead of the 2027 general elections has experienced a major legal earthquake.

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has officially stated that it will not take an immediate position on the fierce leadership crisis rocking the African Democratic Congress (ADC) until it secures and thoroughly studies the Certified True Copy (CTC) of the Federal High Court judgment that invalidated the David Mark-led leadership.

The legal showdown stems from a landmark ruling delivered by Justice Peter Lifu of the Federal High Court in Abuja.

The court nullified the caretaker committee led by former Senate President David Mark, declaring its emergence and subsequent actions a flagrant violation of the ADC constitution, the Electoral Act, and the 1999 Constitution.

Crucially, the ruling invalidated all decisions made under the Mark-led leadership—most notably including the emergence of former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar as the party’s presidential standard-bearer for 2027, as well as the appointment of former Minister of Interior Rauf Aregbesola as National Secretary and the nominations of various candidates.

The legal challenge was initiated through a suit marked FHC/ABJ/CS/1819/2025 filed by Nafiu Bala Gombe, a former ADC Deputy National Chairman (North-East).

Gombe had argued that following the resignation of former National Chairman Ralph Nwosu, he was constitutionally next in line to take over the helm, rather than the constitution of an outside caretaker committee.

Justice Lifu upheld the arguments, also barring Mark and Aregbesola from parading themselves as national officers and restraining INEC from acting on resolutions from the party’s July 27, 2025, National Executive Committee (NEC) meeting.

Reacting to the development, INEC’s National Commissioner and Chairman of the Information and Voter Education Committee, Mohammed Haruna, told Sunday PUNCH that the electoral body operates strictly on verified legal documents rather than media reports.

“We can’t take a position until we see the judgment ourselves. We have to get the certified true copy because we don’t take decisions or reports of what the court said based on reports because the reports could be wrong,” Haruna stated.

Haruna added that the commission would deliberate on the matter during its weekly meeting and noted that INEC would legally comply with any further court orders or injunctions should the David Mark faction appeal the judgment.

As legal battles intensify and party stakeholders scramble to steady the ship ahead of tight electoral deadlines, the future of the ADC’s electoral ambitions hangs precariously in the balance.

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