The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has said the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) will not field a candidate in Saturday’s Osun State governorship election, despite a recent Court of Appeal ruling directing the commission to include the party on the ballot.
The commission made the clarification on Friday, August 14, 2026, following Thursday’s judgment by a three-member panel of the Court of Appeal ordering INEC to allow the candidate backed by the Tanimu Turaki-led faction of the PDP to participate in the election.
According to INEC’s Chief Press Secretary and Media Adviser to the Chairman, Adedayo Oketola, the commission has appealed the judgment and filed an application for a stay of execution.
Oketola said the commission’s operational arrangements for the election remained unchanged, stressing that neither faction of the PDP was currently presenting an active candidate for the poll.
“Although the Court of Appeal delivered a judgment on Thursday directing the inclusion of the PDP on the ballot, I want to make it clear that the judgment does not affect the Commission’s operational arrangements for tomorrow’s election,” Oketola said.
He added that INEC would continue to pursue the matter through the appropriate judicial process while maintaining its preparations for the election.
The commission’s position is based on its electoral guidelines, which provide that only the leadership of a political party recognised by INEC and listed in its database can nominate candidates for an election.
INEC does not recognise the Turaki-led faction of the PDP and consequently did not accept the governorship candidate it sponsored for the Osun election.
The development follows the withdrawal of Governor Ademola Adeleke from the PDP nomination process. The Wike-backed National Working Committee, through its National Publicity Secretary, Jagunda Haruna Mohammed, said the party was not presenting any candidate because Adeleke, who had purchased the party’s nomination form, pulled out.
Meanwhile, INEC said there would be no postponement or disruption to Saturday’s election, assuring that its logistical and security arrangements were already in place across the state.
“Voting will commence at 8:30 a.m. tomorrow as scheduled,” Oketola said.
The Osun State governorship election is scheduled for Saturday, August 15, 2026, with voters expected to elect the next governor of the state.
