SDP Cleared for Saturday By-elections as INEC Withholds Labour Party Approval

By James Adamu in Abuja

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has confirmed that the Social Democratic Party (SDP) will participate in Saturday’s by-elections across 12 states, following a last-minute court order.

However, the electoral body has yet to approve candidates from the Labour Party, despite a separate court directive instructing it to do so.

In a press release issued on Friday, INEC stated that it had complied with a Federal High Court judgment ordering the inclusion of SDP candidates, whose names were submitted manually after missing the initial deadline.

“The Commission has been served with the judgement of the Federal High Court, Abuja Division,” said Sam Olumekun, INEC’s National Commissioner for Information and Voter Education. “In compliance with the judgement, the names of the candidates submitted manually have been accepted and published on our website. The party will participate in the bye-elections.”

Olumekun assured voters that the late inclusion of SDP candidates would not disrupt the polls, scheduled for Saturday, 16 August 2025. However, INEC reserved the right to appeal the ruling.

The decision contrasts with INEC’s handling of the Labour Party, which remains excluded from the ballot despite a July 23 court order from the Nasarawa State High Court. The ruling, delivered by Justice Mustapha A. Ramat, directed INEC to grant the Julius Abure-led faction access to upload its candidates’ names for both the by-elections and upcoming Federal Capital Territory (FCT) council polls.

“The Defendant [INEC] is hereby ordered to accord exclusive recognition to only the officers of Labour Party, including Julius Abure and Alhaji Umar Farouk Ibrahim, as the National Chairman and National Secretary,” the court ruled. It further mandated INEC to provide the party with access codes to nominate candidates.

Labour Party officials have accused INEC of deliberate obstruction. “We are hoping that INEC, as a law-abiding institution, will do the needful by formally publishing the names of our nominees without further delay,” said Obiora Ifoh, the party’s National Publicity Secretary.

He alleged that the delay had unfairly restricted their candidates’ campaign period, calling it a “systemic route orchestrated by INEC to perpetually prevent Labour Party from favourably participating in elections.”

The dispute coincides with a public rift between the Labour Party leadership and its former presidential candidate, Peter Obi, who reportedly urged supporters to vote for another party in the by-elections. The Abure-led faction dismissed Obi’s stance as “misleading, mischievous, and delusional,” accusing him of fueling the party’s internal crises.

“Peter Obi has turned himself into an irony in Nigeria’s political space,” the party said in a statement. “He created the crisis in the Labour Party and is now citing it as a reason why people should not vote for us.”

With hours remaining before polls open, the SDP’s participation is secured, while the Labour Party’s fate hangs in the balance. INEC has not publicly explained its refusal to comply with the Nasarawa court order, leaving candidates and voters in limbo. Legal analysts suggest the electoral body may be awaiting clarification from higher courts, given the conflicting leadership claims within the Labour Party.

As the deadline looms, the focus shifts to whether INEC will implement the court’s directive or risk further litigation—and how the unresolved disputes might shape outcomes in the closely watched by-elections.