The Supreme Court has upheld an appeal by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) against a Court of Appeal judgment that voided parts of the Electoral Act 2026 relating to political party primaries and membership registers.

A seven-member panel led by Justice Adamu Jauro, on Thursday, set aside the Court of Appeal’s decision in favour of the Zenith Labour Party (ZLP) and upheld the judgment of the Federal High Court.

The apex court held that Sections 77(5) and 84 of the Electoral Act do not conflict with the 1999 Constitution. It also awarded N2 million in costs against the ZLP.

The ruling followed a legal challenge by the ZLP at the Federal High Court in Abuja, where the party argued that provisions of the Electoral Act were inconsistent with the Constitution and amounted to unconstitutional interference in the internal affairs of political parties.

The Federal High Court, presided over by Justice Mohammed Umar, dismissed the suit in a judgment delivered on May 5, 2026.

Dissatisfied with the decision, the ZLP appealed, and the Court of Appeal, in a judgment delivered on July 16, 2026, allowed the appeal in part and voided provisions of the Electoral Act relating to party primaries and membership registers.

The decision prompted INEC to approach the Supreme Court, according to the commission’s brief of argument filed in the appeal.

The provisions at the centre of the dispute included Sections 77(5), 77(6), 77(7) and 84(2) of the Electoral Act 2026.

Sections 77(5), 77(6) and 77(7) concern statutory requirements relating to political parties’ membership registers, while Section 84(2) prescribes direct primaries or consensus as methods for the nomination of candidates by political parties.

The ZLP had based its case, among others, on Sections 221 and 222 of the 1999 Constitution, which provide the constitutional framework governing political parties.

Meanwhile, the Supreme Court also dismissed separate appeals filed by the Social Democratic Party (SDP) and Youth Party against INEC.

In the SDP v INEC case, the court heard the appeal on its merit before dismissing it.

In the Youth Party’s case, the court upheld INEC’s preliminary objection and struck out the appeal for being incompetent, ruling that it had been filed one day outside the stipulated time.

The Supreme Court’s ruling effectively resolves the challenges brought before it over the disputed provisions of the Electoral Act 2026.