Abuja, Nigeria — The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has formally moved to challenge the outcome of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Area Council elections, setting up a dedicated legal team to contest the declared results and pursue redress through Nigeria’s courts. The decision comes amid allegations of widespread irregularities, voter intimidation and procedural flaws that the party says undermined the integrity of the polls held on 21 February 2026.
According to a statement released by the party’s National Publicity Secretary, Comrade Ini Ememobong, the PDP congratulated its winners in Gwagwalada but expressed deep concerns over how the broader electoral process was conducted. Ememobong said the opposition party has inaugurated a special legal panel, led by the PDP’s National Legal Adviser, Shafi Bara’u, to handle election petitions arising from the Area Council elections.
Official results from the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) showed that the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) secured victories in five of the six area council chairmanship seats — including Abuja Municipal Area Council (AMAC), Abaji, Bwari, Kwali and Kuje — while the PDP’s candidate, Mohammed Kasim, claimed victory in Gwagwalada.
In its statement, the PDP alleged that the election was marred by intimidation, high-powered money politics and executive overreach, pointing to multiple reports and video evidence of alleged misconduct during the voting process. The party specifically accused armed security personnel of being deployed to cart away result sheets at polling units, intimidate voters and exert undue influence on the conduct of the election.
“The victory that we secured in Gwagwalada, while significant, came against the backdrop of unprecedented intimidation and brazen executive brigandage,” the PDP statement said. The opposition party criticized the broader conduct of the polls, describing them as compromised and calling on aggrieved PDP candidates to approach the party’s legal team promptly — warning that delays could jeopardize their prospects in election petition cases.
PDP officials also linked the incredible voter apathy witnessed across many councils — where turnout was markedly low — to what they described as eroded public confidence in the electoral process under the newly amended Electoral Act 2026. In their view, the legislation and its implementation contributed to voter disenchantment and diminished trust in outcomes.
The party further urged lawmakers and the presidency to take corrective steps to safeguard the democratic process, cautioning that if the issues identified in the FCT polls are not addressed, the same flaws may reappear and worsen in the lead-up to the 2027 general elections.
As the PDP prepares its legal challenge, political observers say the forthcoming petitions will test Nigeria’s electoral justice system and may set the tone for how contentious elections are adjudicated ahead of the larger national electoral cycle.