Court nullifies Pantami’s ticket, orders fresh PDP gov’ship primary in Gombe

The Federal High Court sitting in Gombe has nullified the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governorship primary that produced former Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Prof. Isa Pantami, as the party’s candidate for the 2027 election.

The court consequently ordered the PDP to conduct a fresh governorship primary election in the state.

The ruling followed a suit challenging the validity of the primary election that produced Pantami as the party’s governorship candidate.

The case was instituted by PDP governorship aspirant, Khamisu Mailantarki, who challenged the process leading to Pantami’s emergence as the party’s candidate.

Mailantarki had argued that Pantami was not a registered member of the PDP at the time of the primary and therefore was not qualified to participate in the exercise.

The court’s decision has therefore thrown the PDP’s 2027 governorship ticket in Gombe State open for a fresh primary, subject to any further legal proceedings arising from the judgment.
Pantami emerged from a PDP governorship primary conducted on May 26, 2026, but his emergence was subsequently challenged by other aspirants over the validity of the process.