If NDC Has Two Governorship Candidates in Plateau, Who Will INEC Recognise on the Ballot?

Reported by: Ijeoma G | Edited by: Oravbiere Osayomore Promise.

The Federal High Court in Jos, Plateau State, has issued an order restraining Jonathan Akuns from parading himself as the governorship candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress for the 2027 election, deepening a crisis that has split the party into rival factions and left its governorship ticket in limbo. Justice S.T. Ishaya issued the order on September 28, 2026, following an ex parte application filed by Alfred Dapal, a governorship aspirant challenging the party's nomination process. The suit, marked FHC/J/CS/87/2026, lists Akuns as the first defendant, the NDC as the second defendant and the Independent National Electoral Commission as the third defendant.

In the order, Justice Ishaya restrained Akuns from announcing, publishing or otherwise holding himself out as the NDC governorship candidate pending the hearing and determination of the suit. The court's order followed its consideration of the motion, a six-paragraph affidavit deposed to by Oscar Mbangmbang, a resident of Mangu Local Government Area of Plateau State, and submissions by counsel to the plaintiff, C.B. Ameh. The judge ruled that the application succeeded in part and adjourned the matter until October 5, 2026, for hearing.

Dapal told the court that he was the candidate produced by the NDC at its governorship nomination exercise held on September 15 at the party's secretariat in Dogon Karfe, Jos North Local Government Area. He is seeking an interlocutory injunction restraining the NDC, its officers and agents from replacing, withdrawing or removing him as the party's governorship candidate pending the determination of the suit. Dapal is also asking the court to stop the NDC from submitting or transmitting Akuns' name to INEC as its governorship candidate in his place. He further seeks an order restraining INEC from accepting, recognising, publishing or giving effect to Akuns' name as the NDC governorship candidate for Plateau State. Another relief seeks an order directing the parties to maintain the status quo ante regarding the September 15 nomination exercise pending the final determination of the case. The plaintiff also asked the court for an accelerated hearing of the suit in view of statutory timelines governing pre-election matters.

The legal battle is the latest chapter in a crisis that has been brewing within the Plateau State chapter of the NDC for months. The dispute has produced two names. Akuns, who emerged unopposed at the party's May 29 governorship primary, is recognised by the national leadership. Dapal, whom the state chapter affirmed as its candidate in a separate exercise in September, has the backing of the state chairman, Solomon Ndam, and chairmen from seven of the state's 17 local government areas. The national leadership attempted to formalise Akuns' candidacy through a substitution or affirmation exercise conducted in Jos on September 15, but Ndam rejected the national delegation's process and proceeded with a separate exercise that produced Dapal. On September 16, the state chapter publicly affirmed Dapal as its candidate and Mwadkon Vincent as his running mate, in a ceremony reportedly witnessed by officials of INEC.

Akuns emerged as the sole aspirant at the NDC's May 29 governorship primary after purchasing the expression-of-interest and nomination forms and completing the screening process. The forms reportedly cost N30 million, and Akuns was nominated unopposed. However, the party later listed Ndam as its candidate in a publication released by the national leadership, a development that generated opposition within the party and led to a push for another exercise to regularise the Plateau ticket. The national leadership subsequently sent its National Auditor, Oluwole Adedapo, to Jos to conduct what it described as a substitution or affirmation exercise. Adedapo said Akuns emerged unopposed because he remained the only aspirant recognised in the process, and he maintained that the conduct of governorship primaries was the responsibility of the national leadership and not the state chapter. The Plateau chapter disagreed, and Ndam proceeded with a parallel process that produced Dapal.

Dapal, who contested the governorship primary of the Peoples Democratic Party in May 2026 under the name Alfred Ali Dapal and reportedly polled 5,036 votes, has been involved in public commentary on Plateau's development challenges for several years. In a 2022 article, he argued that unemployment, poverty and limited economic opportunities were contributing to insecurity in the state, and he called for greater investment in agriculture and economic development.

The emergence of two candidates has created uncertainty within the party ahead of the 2027 general elections, particularly among candidates contesting other elective positions under the NDC platform. Akuns, acting on the directive of the National Working Committee, subsequently convened a meeting of all NDC candidates in the state to harmonise the selection of polling unit agents ahead of the elections. However, the candidates reportedly declined to attend the meeting, saying they did not want their participation to be interpreted as taking sides with either of the two governorship candidates. The meeting, scheduled to hold at Kwang, near the COCIN Church, was also intended to provide an opportunity for NDC candidates to interact, build stronger working relationships and discuss the collective direction of the campaign ahead of the elections.

The development came against the backdrop of a directive by the national leadership of the party to its structures across the country to commence preparations for the 2027 elections. The NDC National Publicity Secretary, Osa Director, had said the party was in consultation with relevant stakeholders towards the establishment and inauguration of its Presidential Campaign Council. Director also said the party leadership, in line with the Electoral Act 2026, had directed all state and local government chairmen to immediately convene meetings with candidates and relevant stakeholders in their respective states to collate and harmonise lists of party agents for the forthcoming elections. However, there are allegations within the Plateau chapter that the state chairman, rather than implement the programme outlined by the NWC, backed a separate legal challenge against the NWC-supervised governorship primary. A suit filed by Hon. Umar Ashmar Jibrin at the Federal High Court, Jos, is seeking, among other reliefs, recognition of the governorship substitution primary that produced Dapal. The five defendants named in the originating summons are INEC, the NDC, the NWC of the NDC, the Plateau State Executive Committee of the party and Akuns.

The court's order is not a final determination of the dispute over the NDC's governorship ticket. The substantive issues, including the competing claims arising from the party's nomination process, remain before the court. The case adds to the emerging dispute over the NDC's governorship ticket in Plateau State ahead of the 2027 election, and it raises questions about the party's ability to present a united front in a state where it hopes to mount a formidable challenge to the ruling All Progressives Congress. The NDC has accused the APC of undermining democracy through politically motivated court actions aimed at weakening opposition parties ahead of the 2027 general elections, but the crisis within its own Plateau chapter has exposed deep internal divisions that could jeopardise its electoral prospects. The adjournment to October 5 gives the parties time to prepare their arguments, but for now, the NDC's governorship ticket in Plateau State remains in the balance, and the party's candidates face uncertainty over which structure to work with as the 2027 elections approach.

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