A Federal High Court in Abuja has ordered the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, to recognise former Imo State Governor Rochas Okorocha as the All Progressives Congress, APC, candidate for the Imo West Senatorial District in the 2027 general elections, removing incumbent Governor Hope Uzodimma from the party’s senatorial ticket.
In its judgment delivered on Thursday, October 29, 2026, Justice Obiora Egwuatu ruled that Okorocha, rather than Uzodimma, won the APC senatorial primary election conducted on May 18.
The court directed INEC to publish Okorocha’s name as the party’s duly nominated candidate and ordered the APC to formally submit his name for the forthcoming election.
It also restrained Governor Uzodimma from parading himself as the APC’s senatorial candidate for Imo West ahead of the January 16, 2027, election.
The judgment followed a suit instituted by Okorocha, who challenged INEC’s decision to publish Uzodimma’s name as the winner of the party’s primary election.
In the case, marked FHC/ABJ/CS/1854/2026, filed on August 13, Okorocha joined INEC, the APC and Governor Uzodimma as respondents.
He asked the court to determine whether the electoral commission was bound by reports submitted by its officials who monitored the May 18 primary election.
Okorocha also challenged the publication of Uzodimma’s name as the party’s candidate, arguing that it contradicted the outcome of the primary election monitored by INEC.
In an affidavit supporting the suit, Okorocha’s son, Amen Rochas, who identified himself as his father’s personal assistant on political matters, alleged that the former governor secured 150,780 votes, while Uzodimma polled 102,158 votes.
According to the affidavit, the APC submitted reports on the conduct and outcome of the primary election to INEC. The documents reportedly included the list of contestants and the results recorded during the exercise.
The affidavit further alleged that the commission subsequently published Uzodimma’s name despite the reported outcome of the primary.
Justice Egwuatu ruled that the evidence presented by Okorocha sufficiently established his claim to the party’s ticket.
However, Uzodimma retains the right to appeal the judgment, meaning the dispute could proceed to a higher court for further determination.
The development adds another chapter to the longstanding political rivalry between the two prominent Imo politicians.
Okorocha governed Imo State from May 2011 to May 2019 before representing Imo West Senatorial District in the ninth National Assembly from June 2019 to June 2023.
His latest bid to return to the Senate has brought him into direct competition with Uzodimma, who became governor in January 2020 following a Supreme Court judgment that overturned the declaration of the then-governor-elect, Emeka Ihedioha, as winner of the 2019 governorship election.
Uzodimma is currently serving his second and final four-year term, which is expected to end in January 2028.
If he ultimately secures the senatorial ticket and wins the election, he would have to leave the governorship before the completion of his tenure to take up the Senate seat.
For now, the Federal High Court’s ruling directs INEC and the APC to recognise Okorocha as the party’s candidate for Imo West. The final outcome of the dispute will depend on whether the judgment is challenged and how any subsequent appeal is resolved.
The case places the APC’s candidate-selection process under renewed scrutiny as political activities gather momentum ahead of the 2027 general elections.
Mediaplusng.com reports that the ruling concerns the party’s nomination for Imo West Senatorial District, while the legal process may continue if the affected parties pursue an appeal.
