2027: INEC list confirms exit of 52 senators

At least 52 serving senators in Nigeria’s 10th National Assembly are set to leave the Senate after the Independent National Electoral Commission excluded their names from the final list of candidates for the 2027 National Assembly elections.

INEC released the final list of candidates for the January 16, 2027 presidential and National Assembly elections last week, with 57 of the 109 serving senators listed to contest the senatorial election.

The development effectively puts the political future of the remaining 52 senators outside the 11th Senate, unless changes are made to the candidates’ list in accordance with the Electoral Act 2026.

Findings showed that the outgoing senators are leaving the chamber for different reasons. While some have secured tickets to contest other elective positions, particularly governorship elections, many lost their party primaries and failed to secure alternative tickets.

Others reportedly stepped aside following political arrangements with governors seeking to move into the Senate after completing their tenure.

In Ogun State, for instance, Senator Ademola Solomon Olamilekan, Chairman of the Senate Committee on Appropriations, will not return to the upper chamber after securing the All Progressives Congress governorship ticket.

Also in Ogun, former governor Gbenga Daniel will not return as senator for Ogun East after Governor Dapo Abiodun secured the ticket to contest the seat.

In Nasarawa State, Senator Aliyu Wadada, a former Chairman of the Senate Committee on Public Accounts, is pursuing the governorship after securing the APC ticket.

A similar development occurred in Imo State, where the Imo West senatorial ticket previously held by Senator Osita Izunaso was ceded to Governor Hope Uzodinma.

Governors also secured senatorial tickets in some other states, including Yobe and Gombe, resulting in the exit of serving senators who previously occupied the seats.

In Sokoto State, former governor and former Peoples Democratic Party presidential aspirant Aminu Waziri Tambuwal is also among the senators who will leave the chamber.

Tambuwal reportedly stepped aside for a younger candidate under a power-sharing arrangement within his current party, the African Democratic Congress.

However, several states have all three serving senators on INEC’s list, giving them a chance to return to the 11th National Assembly.

In Lagos, Senators Adetokunbo Abiru, Adebule Idiat Oluranti and Sanni Eshilokun are listed to contest the Lagos East, Lagos West and Lagos Central seats respectively.

Ekiti also has all three serving senators on the list: Senate Leader Opeyemi Bamidele, Chairman of the Senate Committee on Media and Public Affairs Yemi Adaramodu, and Senator Fasuyi Cyril Oluwole.

The same applies to Akwa Ibom, where Senate President Godswill Akpabio, Senator Aniekan Bassey and Senator Ekong Sampson are listed for the Akwa Ibom North-West, North-East and South senatorial districts respectively.

All three serving senators from Borno State, including Senator Mohammed Ali Ndume, are also among the 57 lawmakers cleared by INEC to contest the 2027 election.

Meanwhile, senators whose names are absent from the final list could still return if a candidate currently listed withdraws or dies and the relevant legal conditions for substitution are met.

Section 31 of the Electoral Act 2026 provides that a candidate seeking to withdraw must submit a written notice, accompanied by a sworn affidavit, to the political party that nominated them. The party must then transmit the withdrawal documents to INEC not later than 90 days before the election.

Section 33 of the Act provides that a political party cannot change or substitute a candidate whose name has been submitted to INEC except in cases involving the death or withdrawal of the candidate, subject to the provisions of the law.

The law also requires INEC to publish the full names and addresses of all nominated candidates at least 60 days before an election.

With the presidential and National Assembly elections scheduled for January 16, 2027, political parties still have a window within which eligible changes to the candidates’ list can be effected in line with the Electoral Act.