Seventy-four candidates of the Peoples Democratic Party in the forthcoming Federal Capital Territory Area Council elections are facing possible disqualification following unresolved leadership crises within the party.

This comes as the Labour Party has been completely shut out of the polls, having presented no candidates on the final list released by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) on September 22, 2025.

With the Area Council elections scheduled for February 21, 2026, INEC documents show that out of the 16 registered political parties, only the LP currently has no candidate cleared for the exercise.

The FCT has 68 elective positions, comprising six chairmanship seats and 62 councillorship positions across Abuja Municipal Area Council, Bwari, Gwagwalada, Kuje, Abaji, and Kwali.

Although the PDP submitted a full slate of 74 candidates — 12 for chairmanship and vice-chairmanship positions and 62 for councillorship seats — the legitimacy of those nominations is now under legal threat.

The LP’s exclusion stems from a protracted leadership tussle between the Julius Abure-led faction and the Nenadi Usman-led National Caretaker Committee, backed by the party’s 2023 presidential candidate, Peter Obi, and Abia State Governor, Alex Otti.

INEC has refused to recognise the national convention held in Nnewi, which re-elected Abure, insisting that his tenure had expired.

Although a court order had directed INEC to issue access codes to enable the party to upload its candidates, the commission has maintained that it only deals with leaders recognised by law, effectively leaving the LP without representation in the FCT elections.

Within the PDP, a leadership battle has erupted between a faction led by former Minister of Special Duties, Tanimu Turaki — elected as the party’s national chairman at the controversial national convention held in Ibadan on November 15 and 16 — and another faction led by Abdulrahman Mohammed, backed by the FCT Minister, Nyesom Wike.

Both factions have exchanged suspensions and filed multiple suits over control of the party’s structure.

Legal experts warn that if the courts eventually rule that the leadership which conducted the PDP primaries was illegal, all nominations made under it could be nullified.

A similar development occurred during the 2019 general elections, when the Supreme Court voided the votes of the APC in Zamfara State and the PDP in Rivers State over irregularities in their nomination processes.

In the FCT, such a ruling would wipe out all 74 PDP candidates, including chairmanship aspirants in AMAC, Abaji, Gwagwalada, Kuje, Bwari, and Kwali, as well as the 62 councillorship contenders across the wards.

Commenting on the matter, the Chairman of the Transition Monitoring Group, Auwal Rafsanjani, warned that the exclusion of opposition parties could lead to voter apathy and a lopsided contest.

“The risk is that if parties fail to resolve these internal problems, the ruling party will become the only viable option. That weakens choice and discourages voters.

“So, it is important that politicians play by the rules and do everything to resolve their internal crises; otherwise, it would give an opportunity for the ruling party and those who have been recruited to undermine and exclude opposition,” he said. (Sunday PUNCH)