By Ahead of the 2023 general elections, the National Executive Committee (NEC) of the All Progressives Congress (APC) met on Wednesday and approved the party’s timetable and schedule of activities.
The proposed schedule include the dates for primary elections for elective positions such as governorship, State House of Assembly, House of Representatives and Senate billed to hold between May 18 and May 24. Interestingly, the ruling party is yet to conclude on the mode of its primaries.
Amid the wait and speculations, BlackBox Nigeria brings to you what the APC constitution says about nominations to elective offices and the mode of primaries.
Section 30.2 of the ruling party’s constitution higlights the conditions for nomination for all elective positions. It reads:
i. No person shall be eligible to contest for any Party position or office or be nominated by the Party to be its candidate at any election, if the person is not a member of the Party.
ii. All nominations into elective offices shall be supported by a specified number of nominators from the relevant constituencies as may be prescribed or provided for in the Party’s Electoral Guidelines.
iii. Any Party office holder interested in contesting for an elective office (whether party office or office in a general election) shall resign and leave office 30 days prior to the date of election or Party primary for the office sought.
In the same vein, Section 20.3 and 20.4 respectively highlights all the elective offices and the procedures for the nomination of candidates for such positions. Read below:
20.3 Nomination of Candidates:
Nomination of candidates for the following offices shall be through direct or indirect primary election to be conducted at the appropriate level, subject to the direction and supervision of the National Working Committee:
a) President,
b) Governor,
c) Senate,
d) House of Representatives,
e) House of Assembly, and
f) Local Government Council/Area Council,
20.4 Procedure for Nomination of Candidates:
i. Direct primaries shall be by Party members in every Ward by open-secret ballot for the candidate of their choice.
ii. Indirect primaries for the purpose of nominating a candidate for the office of:
a) President shall be at the National Convention by the members constituting the National Convention.
b) Governor shall be by the state congress at the designated venue for that purpose.
c) Senator shall be by the Local Government Congresses constituting the Senatorial District at the designated venue for that purpose.
d) Member of the House of Representatives shall by the Local Government Congresses constituting the Federal Constituency at the designated venue for that purpose.
e) Member of House of Assembly shall be by the Ward Executive Committees constituting the State Constituency at the designated venue for that purpose.
f) Local Government Council/Area Council Chairman shall be by the Ward Executive Committees constituting the Local Government/Area Council at the designated venue for that purpose.
iii. At all Congresses and the Convention, contestants with the highest number of votes shall be announced as the winners accordingly at the designated venue.
iv. Without prejudice to other provisions of this Article, the National Working Committee shall, subject to the approval of the National Executive Committee, make Rules and Regulations for the conduct of Party primaries. All such Rules, Regulations and Guidelines shall take into consideration and uphold the principle of Federal Character, gender balance, geo-political spread and rotation of offices, to as much as possible ensure balance within the constituency covered.
