The Court of Appeal in Abuja on Thursday struck down key provisions of the Electoral Act regulating political party membership registers and methods of candidate nomination, holding that they were inconsistent with the 1999 Constitution.
A three-member panel of the appellate court, led by Justice Balkisu Aliyu, unanimously allowed an appeal marked CA/ABJ/CV/750/2026, filed by the Zenith Party and set aside the judgment of the Federal High Court, which had dismissed the suit.
In the lead judgment delivered by Justice Eberechi Nyesom-Wike, the court declared Sections 77(5), 77(6), 77(7) and 84(2) of the Electoral Act 2026 unconstitutional.
The court held that the National Assembly could not, through an Act of Parliament, impose restrictions on political parties that conflict with powers already guaranteed to them under the Constitution.
It ruled that Sections 221 and 222 of the Constitution recognise political parties as the bodies responsible for sponsoring candidates for elections and managing their internal affairs.
