Court Orders INEC to Deregister ADC, ZLP, AA, Other Political Parties

The Federal High Court sitting in Abuja has ordered the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to deregister the African Democratic Congress (ADC) and four other political parties for failing to meet constitutional requirements for continued registration.

The other affected parties are the Action Peoples Party (APP), Action Alliance (AA), Accord Party (AP), and Zenith Labour Party (ZLP).

The order was issued by Justice Peter Lifu while delivering judgment in a suit filed by the National Forum of Former Legislators.

In the suit marked FHC/ABJ/CS/2637/2026, the plaintiffs asked the court to determine whether INEC has a constitutional obligation to deregister political parties that fail to satisfy the electoral performance benchmarks stipulated under Section 225A of the 1999 Constitution (as amended), the Electoral Act 2022, and the commission’s regulations.

The forum argued that the five political parties had consistently failed to meet the constitutional thresholds required to maintain their registration.

According to the plaintiffs, the constitutional requirements include securing at least 25 per cent of votes in a state during a presidential election or winning at least one elective seat at the federal, state, or local government level.

The former legislators told the court that the ADC, APP, AA, AP, and ZLP recorded poor performances in the 2023 general elections and subsequent by-elections conducted by INEC, failing to win seats across major tiers of government.

They further contended that the continued recognition of the parties by INEC was unlawful and detrimental to the integrity and efficiency of Nigeria’s electoral system.

The plaintiffs therefore sought a declaration compelling INEC to enforce the constitutional provisions by removing the affected parties from the register of political parties.

In his ruling, Justice Lifu agreed with the arguments advanced by the plaintiffs and directed INEC to proceed with the deregistration of the five political parties.

The court also ordered the electoral commission to ensure compliance with the judgment before preparations for the 2027 general elections progress further.