Isaac Samuel
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has excluded the names of former Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Isa Ali Pantami, and the Ogun State Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governorship candidate, Ladi Adebutu, from its final lists of candidates for the 2027 governorship elections.
The omission of the two politicians from the commission’s final list is significant, given their political profiles and the implications their absence could have for the electoral contests in their respective states.
Pantami, a former minister under President Bola Tinubu’s predecessor, Muhammadu Buhari, had attracted attention over his political ambitions in Gombe State, while Adebutu has remained a prominent figure in Ogun State politics and a major opposition voice in the state.
The final list of candidates published by INEC is an important stage in the electoral process, as it provides voters and political stakeholders with the official details of those cleared to contest the elections.
The omissions come against the backdrop of separate controversies surrounding the nomination and eligibility of the two politicians, with both cases raising questions about the processes through which political parties submit candidates for elections.
Pantami’s exclusion follows court battle over PDP ticket
In Gombe State, Pantami’s absence from the final list comes after a legal dispute over the process that produced him as the PDP’s governorship candidate.
The former minister has initially emerged as the party’s candidate in May 2026.
However, a Federal High Court sitting in Gombe subsequently nullified his emergence and ordered the party to conduct a fresh governorship primary following a suit challenging the nomination process.
INEC has not publicly stated the reason for excluding Adebutu and his running mate in the reports available at the time of filing this story.
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