The Independent National Electoral Commission is holding back on any decision concerning the African Democratic Congress’ 2027 electoral nominations until it has examined the official judgment invalidating the party’s leadership under former Senate President David Mark. The commission says the move is necessary to ensure that its next steps are guided by the court’s actual orders, rather than reports of the proceedings.

INEC National Commissioner and Chairman of its Information and Voter Education Committee, Mohammed Kudu Haruna, disclosed this on Saturday, explaining that the commission would obtain the Certified True Copy of the judgment before considering its implications at a meeting next week. He said INEC would not make a formal decision based on media accounts that might not accurately reflect the court’s ruling.

The judgment, delivered on Thursday by Justice Peter Lifu of the Federal High Court in Abuja, nullified the caretaker committee led by Mark. The court ruled that the process through which the leadership emerged breached the ADC constitution, provisions of the Electoral Act and the 1999 Constitution.

The ruling also affected decisions taken under the disputed leadership, including the party’s presidential primary that produced former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar as its candidate for the 2027 election. It equally invalidated the emergence of former Interior Minister Rauf Aregbesola as National Secretary and other party nominations, while directing INEC not to recognise decisions from the ADC’s 99th National Executive Committee meeting of July 27, 2025.

The case followed a legal challenge by Nafiu Bala Gombe, a former ADC Deputy National Chairman for the North-East, who questioned the emergence of the Mark-led leadership. Gombe argued that he was entitled to take over the party’s leadership following the resignation of its former National Chairman, Ralph Nwosu.

The ADC has since filed a notice of appeal and an application for a stay of execution, with its legal team notifying INEC of the pending proceedings on November 6. Haruna said the commission would also comply with any subsequent court order, including an injunction suspending the execution of the judgment, if one is granted.

While Atiku has maintained that the ruling will not end his ambition to contest the 2027 presidential election, the legal challenge and INEC’s forthcoming deliberations leave the status of the ADC’s leadership and nominations subject to further judicial and electoral decisions. The commission’s position is expected to become clearer after it receives the certified judgment and considers the matter at its next meeting.