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BREAKING NEWS: Court Orders Gov. Hope Uzodimma to Stop Claiming APC Senatorial Ticket, Directs Party to Recognise Rochas Okorocha
BREAKING NEWS: Court Orders Gov. Hope Uzodimma to Stop Claiming APC Senatorial Ticket, Directs Party to Recognise Rochas Okorocha
The political battle for the All Progressives Congress (APC) senatorial ticket in Imo West has taken a dramatic turn, with the Federal High Court in Abuja ordering Imo State Governor, Hope Uzodimma, to stop presenting himself as the party’s candidate for the January 16, 2027, senatorial election.
In a judgment delivered by Justice Obiora Egwuatu, the court ruled that Uzodimma did not win the APC senatorial primary conducted on May 18, 2026, and monitored by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
The court held that the evidence presented during the proceedings established that former Imo State Governor, Rochas Okorocha, secured the majority of votes cast in the primary election.
Consequently, the court directed the APC to submit Okorocha’s name to INEC as its duly nominated candidate for the Imo West Senatorial District in the 2027 general elections, delivering a significant development in the high-stakes political contest between the two prominent Imo politicians.
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The judgment followed a legal challenge instituted by Okorocha against INEC over the commission’s publication of Uzodimma’s name as the APC candidate for the senatorial district.
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The suit, marked FHC/ABJ/CS/1854/2026, also listed Uzodimma and the APC as respondents. Okorocha’s counsel, O.J. Aboje, reportedly filed the originating summons at the Federal High Court in Abuja on August 13, 2026. At the centre of the dispute was the controversy surrounding the outcome of the APC National Assembly primary held on May 18, 2026.
Williams Kayode, chairman and returning officer of the 2026 Imo APC National Assembly Primary Election Committee, had declared Uzodimma the winner with 230,464 votes.
However, Okorocha disputed the declaration, insisting that the results showed he won the contest with 150,780 votes, while Uzodimma polled 102,158 votes.
The former governor consequently approached the court to determine whether INEC was legally bound to rely on the reports submitted by its officials who monitored the primary election.
He also challenged the legality of INEC’s decision to publish Uzodimma’s name as the winner, arguing that the commission acted wrongly by recognising a candidate who, according to his claims, did not win the party’s primary.
Okorocha sought an order nullifying the publication of Uzodimma’s name and directing INEC to recognise and publish him as the APC’s duly nominated candidate for Imo West. He further requested that the court restrain Uzodimma, the APC and anyone acting on their behalf from presenting the governor as the party’s candidate for the senatorial election.
Another significant dimension of the legal battle concerned the constitutional implications of Uzodimma’s governorship tenure and his reported participation in the senatorial race.
In an affidavit filed in support of the suit, Amen Rochas, a son of the former governor, alleged that Uzodimma purchased nomination forms for the senatorial ticket despite his tenure as governor extending beyond the inauguration of the 11th Senate in June 2027.
Uzodimma commenced his second term as governor in January 2024, with his tenure expected to end in January 2028.
Okorocha also relied on Section 183 of the 1999 Constitution, which prohibits a state governor from holding another executive office or engaging in paid employment while serving as governor.
On that basis, the former governor argued that Uzodimma’s emergence as the APC’s senatorial candidate raised constitutional questions, particularly in view of the governor’s expected tenure.
Okorocha, who governed Imo State from 2011 to 2019, subsequently represented the state in the Senate from 2019 to 2023. His latest bid to return to the National Assembly brought him into direct competition with Uzodimma for the APC ticket.
With the Federal High Court now ruling in his favour and directing the APC to submit his name to INEC, the decision represents a major development in the struggle for the Imo West senatorial seat ahead of the 2027 general elections.
The ruling places renewed attention on the party’s nomination process, the role of INEC in monitoring primary elections and the legal procedures governing the emergence of candidates for elective offices in Nigeria.
The political implications of the judgment could be far-reaching for the APC in Imo State, particularly as preparations intensify for the 2027 elections and the contest for one of the state’s senatorial seats becomes increasingly consequential.
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