2027 Election: Oyo SDP Governorship Candidate Drags Party to Court, Reason Emerges

• Saheed Oladele filed a suit challenging the SDP's submission of Michael Okunlade's name to INEC as the party's consensus gubernatorial candidate
• Oladele's lawyer argued that Okunlade never obtained the required nomination forms before INEC's deadline, violating the Electoral Act 2026
• Oladele is asking the court to restrain both INEC and SDP national executives from recognising Okunlade as a validly nominated candidate

Legit.ng journalist Ridwan Adeola Yusuf has over nine years of experience covering politics, elections, public affairs, and governance in Nigeria and Africa.

Ibadan, Oyo state - The internal crisis rocking the Oyo state chapter of the Social Democratic Party (SDP) has taken a judicial turn, with the party's sole registered gubernatorial aspirant, Saheed Oladele, dragging the party leadership and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) before a court over the nomination of a rival candidate for the 2027 governorship election.

Legit.ng gathered that Akinlolu Oyebamiji of AOC Chambers filed the suit on Oladele's behalf, directly challenging the submission of Michael Okunlade's name to INEC as the SDP's consensus candidate for the Oyo state governorship race.

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SDP ticket dispute heads to court

Oyebamiji told the court that Okunlade failed to obtain the expression of interest and nomination forms before INEC's stipulated deadline, making his recognition by the commission a breach of the Electoral Act 2026.

"The foundation of candidate nomination requires adherence to statutory procedures. In this instance, no nomination form was obtained, nor did our client execute any instrument of withdrawal or consent as required by law," Oyebamiji said.

The lawyer further argued that subsequent efforts by Oyo state party executives to introduce Okunlade and unveil him on August 17 amounted to an unlawful attempt to trade the governorship ticket with a third party.

Oladele seeks recognition as SDP candidate

Among the reliefs sought, Oladele is asking the court to declare Okunlade's imposition as the SDP consensus candidate null, void, and without legal effect, given that no participating aspirant within the INEC nomination window gave consent to the arrangement.

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He is also seeking a perpetual injunction to stop Okunlade from presenting himself as the party's governorship candidate, and a separate order restraining both INEC and the SDP's national executives from recognising Okunlade in any official capacity.

Additionally, Oladele wants the court to direct the party and INEC to formally recognise him as the valid SDP governorship candidate for Oyo state.

The SDP chieftain is also seeking an order compelling INEC to upload his name onto its gubernatorial candidate portal ahead of the 2027 general elections.

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2027 election: INEC releases candidates’ list

Earlier, Legit.ng reported that INEC published its final list of candidates for the 2027 elections, and the names of several prominent Nigerian politicians were nowhere to be found.

Former President Goodluck Jonathan was among the notable names missing from the list, despite being presented to INEC as the presidential candidate of the Tanimu Turaki-led faction of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

Source: Legit.ng