NDC Fields 330 House Candidates as INEC Publishes Final 2027 List

ABUJA — The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has published its final list of candidates for the January 2027 House of Representatives elections, with the National Democratic Congress (NDC) fielding 330 candidates across the country.
The NDC slate places the party as the third-largest political platform in the House of Representatives contest, behind the All Progressives Congress (APC), which has 360 candidates, and the African Democratic Congress (ADC), with 346 candidates.
The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), according to the published figures, follows with 316 candidates.
The INEC records, signed by the Commission’s Secretary, Rose Oriaran-Anthony, indicate that the NDC has secured representation in every state of the federation as well as the Federal Capital Territory, giving the party a nationwide presence in the race for seats in the 10th House.
The distribution shows Kano State with the highest number of NDC House of Rep candidates at 24, followed by Lagos with 23 and Kaduna with 15. Oyo and Rivers have 13 candidates each, while the Federal Capital Territory has two and Kebbi has three.
The figures underscore the breadth of the NDC’s participation as political parties intensify preparations for the 2027 general elections.
Gender Gap Raises Concern
Despite the nationwide spread of its candidates, the composition of the NDC ticket exposes a significant gender imbalance.
The document revealed that our of the 330 candidates listed, only 19 are women, representing approximately 5.8 per cent of the party’s total House of Representatives candidates.
The overwhelming majority of the candidates are therefore men, highlighting the continuing difficulty Nigerian political parties face in achieving meaningful female representation in elective positions.
The low number of women candidates could become a subject of discussion as Nigerians assess the competing parties’ commitments to political inclusion ahead of the 2027 elections.
One Candidate Listed With Disability
The INEC list also identifies one candidate as a person with disability.
Awal Abdulrahman, aged 43, is listed as a visually impaired candidate contesting the Bida/Gbako/Katcha Federal Constituency in Niger State.
The inclusion provides an additional dimension to the NDC’s candidate list, although the presence of only one candidate identified as a person with disability also raises broader questions about the representation of persons with disabilities in Nigeria’s electoral politics.
Candidates Span 25 to 72
The NDC candidates range in age from 25 to 72 years, with the average age put at just under 46.
The age spread presents a combination of younger aspirants and older political figures seeking to represent their constituencies at the federal level.
With the final candidate list now published, the focus will increasingly shift from party nominations to grassroots mobilisation, campaign organisation and the ability of candidates to translate their party structures into votes at the polling units.
For the NDC, the nationwide slate represents a significant organisational test. Having candidates across all 36 states and the FCT gives the party an opportunity to build a broader legislative presence, but the size of the ticket will ultimately matter only if the candidates can establish effective constituency-level structures and persuade voters to support them.
The publication of the final list also provides voters with an opportunity to scrutinise the credentials, records and programmes of individual candidates before casting their ballots.
As the 2027 election approaches, the NDC’s 330-member House ticket places the party firmly among the major contenders for federal legislative seats, while its relatively low representation of women remains one of the clearest weaknesses in the composition of its candidate list.