By Muhammad Mamman
PDP Hit by Fresh Turmoil as INEC Excludes Wole Oluyede from Ekiti 2026 Governorship List
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has released its provisional list of candidates for the Ekiti State governorship election scheduled for 20 June 2026 — but the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) is conspicuously absent from the line-up.
According to the list displayed at INEC’s state headquarters along New Iyin Road in Ado-Ekiti, 12 political parties successfully submitted the names of their governorship candidates and running mates. However, the PDP’s candidate, Dr Wole Oluyede, who emerged from the party’s 9 November 2025 primary conducted under the Umar Damagum-led National Working Committee (NWC), was not included.
The omission has intensified the internal crisis within the PDP, which has been battling factional disputes over the legitimacy of its primary and the proper authority of the party’s national leadership.
Dr Oluyede, a renowned medical expert and the presumed flagbearer, had been expected to feature on the list following his victory at the party primary. INEC has yet to issue an official explanation for the absence of his name, though sources suggest the dispute within the party may have affected the submission process.
As political tension heightens in Ekiti, stakeholders are awaiting the Commission’s final list while pressure mounts on the PDP to resolve its leadership issues ahead of the crucial 2026 poll.
