The African Democratic Congress has rejected the revised 2026–2027 general election timetable released by the Independent National Electoral Commission, alleging that the new schedule is calibrated to secure President Bola Tinubu’s return to office.

In a strongly worded statement signed by its National Publicity Secretary, Bolaji Abdullahi, the party accused INEC of disguising a partisan agenda as routine electoral planning. The ADC argued that the combination of compressed timelines and stringent new documentation rules under the Electoral Act 2026 amounts to a systematic exclusion of opposition parties from the 2027 polls.

INEC had initially fixed the Presidential and National Assembly elections for February 20, 2027, with Governorship and State Houses of Assembly polls slated for March 6, 2027. Those dates drew protests from Muslim groups who warned that the schedule clashed with the Ramadan period.

Responding to the outcry, the National Assembly amended Clause 28 of the Electoral Act Amendment Bill, cutting the mandatory notice period for elections from 360 to 300 days. That change enabled INEC to bring the polls forward. In its revised timetable, signed by Chairman Joash Amupitan, the commission shifted the Presidential and National Assembly elections to January 16, 2027, and the Governorship and State Assembly elections to February 6, 2027.

The ADC’s fiercest objection, however, targets the new compliance requirements. Under Section 77 of the Electoral Act 2026, all political parties must submit a comprehensive digital membership register to INEC by April 2, 2026. The register must contain each member’s name, sex, date of birth, address, state, local government, ward, polling unit, National Identification Number and photograph, in both hard and soft copies. Any party that fails to comply within the deadline is barred from fielding candidates.

The ADC contends that this framework is “a political instrument carefully structured to narrow democratic space,” noting that parties have barely weeks to compile and transmit vast amounts of sensitive data nationwide. It contrasts this with the ruling All Progressives Congress, which reportedly began its own digital registration drive in early 2025, long before the requirement became law.

Describing that head start as “insider advantage,” the ADC insists the process is “practically impossible” for smaller parties and amounts to a rigged contest. The party says it has joined other opposition groups in rejecting both the Electoral Act 2026 and the revised timetable, warning that it will not legitimise what it calls a “self-succession agenda.”

The ADC urged civil society organisations and Nigerians to interrogate the new rules and resist any electoral framework “structured to produce predetermined outcomes.”