Opposition political parties on Saturday raced against time to submit updated membership registers to the Independent National Electoral Commission ahead of the midnight deadline for the 2027 general elections.

The rush followed INEC’s March 27 extension of the deadline for submission of membership registers for the 2027 general elections to May 10, 2026.

“The register of party members must be submitted to INEC not later than 21 days before the holding of their respective primaries,” the commission had stated.

It gave May 30 as the last day for the conduct of primaries, which means the last day for the submission of the digital register for a party planning primaries on May 30 is May 9.

The development comes amid growing anxiety over the possible disqualification of aspirants and unresolved coalition talks.

The parties disclosed this in separate exclusive interviews with The PUNCH, insisting they had either complied with the requirements of the Electoral Act or were finalising the process before the deadline elapsed.

The National Chairman of the New Nigeria People’s Party, Yusuf Bala, said the party had surpassed the minimum membership threshold stipulated by INEC and already submitted its register in multiple volumes.

He, however, did not disclose the total number of registered members of the party.

“We have passed the threshold of INEC that no party should have fewer than 5,000. We have met that and far surpassed it.

“Even the party membership register that we took to the commission is in three volumes. So as it stands, we have quite a number of members scattered across the country.

“We have followers from Kano, Kaduna, and North Central. To us, we have a very reasonable followership in the entire 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory,” he said.

The National Publicity Secretary of the Social Democratic Party, Rufus Aiyenigba, said the party had fulfilled all necessary requirements long before INEC’s verification exercise.

“We have complied with the membership register long before INEC officials visited us at the secretariat for verification a few weeks ago. So, the issue of deadlines does not apply to the SDP.

“We have done the needful by giving them tonnes of the registration documents. Although I can’t supply you with a specific figure now because I have not been updated on the current statistics, the current membership strength of the party is quite encouraging,” he stated.

The National Chairman of the SDP, Shehu Gabam, also confirmed that the party met the deadline.

“Yes, we did,” Gabam told our correspondent when asked whether the SDP had transmitted its register to the commission.

The Labour Party also claimed to be witnessing an unexpected surge in membership across northern Nigeria.

LP National Publicity Secretary, Ken Asogwa, said data available to the party showed stronger registration figures in the North than in the South.

“The Labour Party has complied fully with the provisions of the Electoral Act regarding the deadline for submission of the party register. But I have not had access to assess our current membership strength.

“Surprisingly, what we were able to glimpse from the backend shows that we have more members in the North than in the South. Apart from Abia State, where we have a sitting governor, we have more registrations in the North.

“In fact, those who purchased more of Labour Party nomination forms are from Taraba, Adamawa, Benue and the far North-East.

“I also think it is commendable to see the direction of our membership spread, especially in the North. We were not even looking at the North in our previous projection because we were looking at the build-up pattern and results from the 2023 elections.

“Again, I think the current LP leadership has done quite well in selling the party to the North, especially what the current chairman has been doing since she came on board in an acting capacity.

“She has been able to take the party to the doorstep of northern homes, and they also bought into it because LP is crisis-free,” Asogwa added.

The Nigeria Democratic Congress said it was confident of meeting the deadline before it expired.

Deputy National Publicity Secretary of the party, Abdulmumin Abdulsalam, disclosed this to our correspondent.

He said, “There is no problem. The NDC will definitely meet the deadline in line with the Electoral Act before it lapses.

“But on the numerical strength of the party, I need to clarify things with the organising secretary and the IT department before I can categorically give you the accurate figure.”

However, Abdulsalam did not revert as promised. As of the time of filing this report, calls placed to his line were unsuccessful.

The National Publicity Secretary of All Progressives Grand Alliance, Ejimofor Opara, confirmed that the party complied with the directive.

When asked if APGA had submitted its membership register, he simply responded, “Yes, please,” without giving further details.

The Young Progressives Party also said it had fulfilled the legal requirement.

Responding to inquiries from The PUNCH, the National Publicity Secretary of the YPP, Wale Egbeola-Martins, said, “Yes, we have complied.”

Publisher and former presidential candidate of the African Action Congress, Omoyele Sowore, equally confirmed compliance by his party.

In a terse response to an inquiry by The PUNCH, Sowore texted, “yes.”

INEC had insisted on strict compliance with provisions of the Electoral Act guiding party administration and nomination processes.

Submission of membership registers is considered a critical requirement because it enables the electoral commission to verify the authenticity of party membership and monitor compliance during congresses and primary elections.

The Electoral Act also empowers INEC to monitor party primaries to ensure that candidates emerge through democratic processes consistent with party constitutions and the law.

INEC explained that the directive was in line with Section 77(4) of the Electoral Act 2026, which mandates political parties to submit their membership registers not later than 21 days before their primaries.

Consequently, political parties across Nigeria embarked on frantic registration drives, emergency meetings and hurried coalition negotiations as the deadline threatened to shut out hundreds of aspirants ahead of the 2027 elections. (The PUNCH)

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