A Federal High Court in Abuja has delivered a landmark ruling in the legal battle over the Ekiti State governorship election, ordering the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to immediately restore Oluwole Oluyede as the valid candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
In the judgment delivered by Justice Umar, the court granted all reliefs sought by Oluyede and the PDP in the suit marked FHC/ABJ/CS/40/2026.
The party in a statement on Friday said the court condemned the electoral body for excluding the candidate, describing the action as unlawful.
The court’s directive leaves no room for ambiguity.
INEC is now mandated to recognize Oluyede as the official PDP candidate for the upcoming Ekiti election, include his name on the official list of candidates, and restore the PDP logo on the ballot papers for the governorship polls.
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Furthermore, Justice Umar issued a perpetual injunction restraining INEC from any further attempts to reject or exclude Oluyede from activities related to the election.
The legal tussle began after the PDP, led by National Chairman Kabiru Turaki, presented Oluyede with a certificate of return as its duly nominated candidate.
However, despite the party’s submission, the commission—under the leadership of Prof. Joash Amupitan—omitted Oluyede’s name from the published list of contestants.
This omission prompted the party to seek judicial intervention to challenge what it described as a “flagrant and unlawful” abuse of authority by the commission.
In a statement signed by the PDP National Publicity Secretary, Comrade Ini Ememobong, the party hailed the verdict as a victory for democracy and a true reflection of the political reality in Ekiti State.
The party, however, issued a stern warning to INEC, advising the commission to remain impartial.”The Commission is aware of several judgments to the effect that it cannot exclude lawfully nominated candidates,” Ememobong stated.
“They should remember the historic negative roles which past electoral commissions played in the collapse of democracy in the past republics and consciously act in favor of protecting multi-party democracy.”
With this legal hurdle cleared, the PDP has officially signaled the commencement of its grassroots campaign.
The party leadership has charged its members across Ekiti to hit the “campaign trail” with a message of “redemption” under Oluyede’s leadership.
The Ekiti Governorship election, scheduled for June 20, 2026, is now set to be a full-force contest following the court-ordered return of the main opposition candidate to the ballot.
