Breaking News: Court Nullifies Pantami’s PDP Governorship Ticket, Orders Fresh Primary in Gombe

The Federal High Court sitting in Gombe State has nullified the process that produced Professor Isa Ali Pantami as the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governorship candidate and ordered the party to conduct a fresh primary election.

Justice Amina Aliyu Mohammed delivered the judgment on Thursday, September 24, 2026, in a suit filed by PDP governorship aspirant Usman Aliyu Garry, who challenged the validity of Pantami’s emergence as the party’s candidate for the 2027 Gombe State governorship election.

Garry had argued that the PDP did not conduct a valid governorship primary in accordance with the party’s guidelines and applicable electoral requirements before announcing Pantami as its sole candidate on June 26, 2026.

Pantami had earlier sought the governorship ticket of the All Progressives Congress (APC) but later defected to the PDP after the APC settled on Jamilu Gwamna as its consensus candidate. He subsequently emerged as the PDP’s candidate through a voice affirmation during the party’s governorship primary held in May.

However, Garry challenged the process in court, contending that the procedure used to produce Pantami did not satisfy the requirements for a valid party primary.

In its judgment, the Federal High Court ordered the PDP to organise a fresh governorship primary in Gombe State in accordance with the party’s guidelines and relevant electoral laws.

The ruling means the PDP will have to undertake a new process to select its governorship candidate ahead of the 2027 Gombe State governorship election, subject to any further legal proceedings arising from the judgment.