Senate Shake-Up: 52 Serving Senators Miss Out As INEC Releases 2027 Final Candidate List

No fewer than 52 serving senators in the 10th National Assembly are set to leave the Senate at the end of their tenure in June 2027 after failing to secure places on the final list of candidates for the forthcoming National Assembly elections.

According to Bush Radio Academy, the development followed the release by the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, of its final list of candidates cleared to contest the January 16, 2027 presidential and National Assembly elections.

Available details indicate that political parties submitted the names of about 57 serving senators for re-election, while 52 other members of the current Senate were left out of the final list. Unless there is a subsequent alteration to the candidates’ list in accordance with the Electoral Act, the affected lawmakers will not return to the Senate in the 11th National Assembly.

The failure of the 52 senators to secure return tickets was not entirely due to unsuccessful party primaries. Some lawmakers voluntarily shifted their political ambitions to other positions, particularly governorship contests, while others reportedly stepped aside as part of political agreements and power-sharing arrangements within their respective states.

In Ogun State, Senator Ademola Solomon Olamilekan, who chairs the Senate Committee on Appropriations, will not return to the chamber after securing the APC governorship ticket. Former Ogun State Governor Gbenga Daniel is also set to leave the Senate after Governor Dapo Abiodun emerged as the candidate for the Ogun East senatorial seat.

In Nasarawa State, Senator Aliyu Wadada, a former Chairman of the Senate Committee on Public Accounts, is pursuing the governorship after securing the APC ticket. A similar development occurred in Imo State, where Senator Osita Izunaso’s Imo West senatorial ticket was reportedly ceded to Governor Hope Uzodinma.

Other governors also secured senatorial tickets in states including Yobe and Gombe, further altering the composition of the current Senate ahead of the 2027 elections.

In Sokoto State, former Governor Aminu Waziri Tambuwal is among the serving senators who are expected to leave the chamber after failing to secure a return ticket. Tambuwal, a former presidential aspirant of the Peoples Democratic Party, reportedly stepped aside for a younger aspirant as part of a power-sharing arrangement within the African Democratic Congress.

Meanwhile, 57 serving senators have secured their respective parties’ tickets and remain in contention for seats in the 11th National Assembly. Among them are Lagos State senators Adetokunbo Abiru, Adebule Idiat Oluranti and Sanni Eshilokun, who secured tickets for Lagos East, Lagos West and Lagos Central respectively.

The three serving senators from Ekiti State also secured return tickets, including Senate Leader Opeyemi Bamidele, Senator Yemi Adaramodu and Senator Fasuyi Cyril Oluwole. Similarly, Senate President Godswill Akpabio, Senator Aniekan Bassey and Senator Ekong Sampson secured the APC tickets for the three senatorial districts in Akwa Ibom State.

All three serving senators from Borno State, including Senator Mohammed Ali Ndume, also made the list of lawmakers cleared to contest the 2027 elections.

Despite the publication of the final list, some changes could still occur under provisions of the Electoral Act 2026. The law permits a candidate to withdraw from an election by submitting written notice and a sworn affidavit to the political party that nominated the candidate, after which the party must forward the documents to INEC within the stipulated period.

The law also limits candidate substitution to specific circumstances, including death or withdrawal, subject to relevant legal requirements. INEC is further required to publish the names and addresses of nominated candidates within the period prescribed by law.

With the presidential and National Assembly elections scheduled for January 16, 2027, political parties still have a limited window for eligible withdrawals and substitutions that could alter some of the current candidate line-ups.