Nigerian court annuls Atiku Abubakar's presidential candidacy and suspends ADC leadership

Court ruling in Abuja

A federal court in Abuja on Thursday, 5 November 2026, annulled the presidential candidacy of Atiku Abubakar, the former vice-president and leading opposition figure, for the election set for 16 January 2027. The ruling also dissolved the presidency and secretariat of the ADC, starting with its leaders David Mark and Rauf Aregbesola, and bars any other ADC candidate from standing in the poll. Every decision Mark took on the party's behalf, including the nomination of Atiku, was voided. ADC spokesman Bolaji Abdullahi said the decision had been issued that morning and that a fuller account would follow later the same day.

The case was brought by Nafiu Bala Gombe, a former ADC vice-president for the north-east, who challenged how Mark became acting leader of the party and, indirectly, the choice of Atiku as candidate. Reports differ on the name of the judge, with Peter Lifu named in some accounts and Musa Liman in another. The electoral commission, INEC, had validated Atiku's candidacy and did not respond to a request for comment from AFP.

Campaign launch and timing

Atiku opened his campaign with a rally in Sokoto, in north-west Nigeria, on 4 November, a day before the court acted. One report described that gathering as very large, and the ruling landed the morning after it. The court's action therefore arrived just as his campaign was getting under way. The sequence from the rally to the ruling and the spokesman's promise of a fuller statement is laid out below.

Atiku's response and next steps

Atiku denounced the judgment on social media, describing it as a calculated attempt to weaken the party and frustrate his candidacy. He said the timing of the ruling, one day after his Sokoto rally, made its purpose plain. He warned the ruling party that his support does not stop in the north and said he intends to keep campaigning. He also questioned the legality of the judgment, citing procedural faults, and announced plans to challenge the whole ruling before the Court of Appeal. The ADC is also expected to appeal, though the reports do not say when.

What it means for the race

Atiku is nearly 80 and making his seventh bid for the presidency. In 2023 he finished second with 29% of the vote, while Bola Tinubu, once his friend and business partner and now his rival, won with 36.6% in a divided opposition field. Those results are shown below.

Bola Tinubu36.6%

Atiku Abubakar29%

Bola Tinubu

36.6 %

Atiku Abubakar

29 %

Data from the article text

Without Atiku, the election would lose a heavyweight candidate from northern Nigeria, a point of sensitivity in a country where regional representation is politically charged, and one report warns the situation could stir unrest. Whether his candidacy can be restored depends on the outcome of the appeal.