Opposition political parties in Ekiti State have threatened to boycott the June 20 governorship election over the exclusion of the Peoples Democratic Party’s candidate, Dr Wole Oluyede, from the official list released by the Independent National Electoral Commission.
The threat was issued on Tuesday by the Inter-Party Advisory Committee during a peaceful protest by PDP supporters at the INEC state headquarters in Ado-Ekiti.The IPAC State Chairman, Owoola Daramola, said opposition parties would not participate in any election that was not inclusive, insisting that no legally nominated candidate should be shut out of the process.
“We want free, fair, credible and inclusive elections. We will not go into an election where a party or candidate is excluded without justification,” Daramola told journalists.A PDP chieftain and former deputy governorship candidate, Ayodeji Ogunsakin, said the party’s primary election was properly conducted under INEC supervision and questioned why Oluyede’s name was not uploaded on the commission’s portal.
He alleged that the ruling All Progressives Congress was uncomfortable with open competition, warning against turning the country into a one-party system.
Responding, the INEC Resident Electoral Commissioner in the state, Dr Bunmi Omoseyindemi, said the matter was beyond the authority of the state office and advised the PDP to direct its complaints to the commission’s national headquarters in Abuja.
INEC had earlier released the list of candidates for the June 20 poll on December 29, 2025, with the final list expected on January 19, 2026, while parties have until January 12 to withdraw or replace candidates
