The planned Imo State local government elections have become the subject of a legal battle, with the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) asking the state High Court to stop the September 26, 2026, polls.
APGA and four of its state executives filed Suit No. HOW/1380/2026 at the High Court of Imo State, Owerri Judicial Division, seeking an injunction restraining the Imo State Independent Electoral Commission (ISIEC) and its chairman from proceeding with the elections pending the determination of the substantive case.
The party’s challenge centres on what it described as defects in the electoral notice issued by ISIEC.
According to APGA, the commission’s 360-day Notice of Election, issued on September 18, 2025, did not specify the actual date of the election. The party argued that the omission made the notice defective under the applicable electoral law.
APGA further contended that ISIEC’s subsequent announcement on September 11, 2026, fixing the election for September 26 could not retrospectively correct what it described as the defect in the earlier notice.
The party also raised questions about the legal framework under which the election process was initiated. It argued that the Electoral Act 2022, relied upon when the 2025 notice was issued, was repealed after the Electoral Act 2026 came into force in February.
Another major issue raised by the plaintiffs concerns the Register of Voters. APGA questioned whether the statutory requirements for the cessation of voter registration, updating and revision at least 90 days before the election were properly followed.
The party is relying on a 2025 Supreme Court decision concerning the Rivers State local government elections, arguing that electoral bodies must comply strictly with mandatory statutory requirements relating to election notices and voters’ registers.
ISIEC, however, has maintained that the September 26 election date is covered by the 360-day notice it issued in 2025 under the Electoral Act 2022, as amended.
The proposed exercise is expected to cover elections for 27 local government chairmanship positions and 305 ward councillorship seats across the state.
APGA’s application for an interlocutory injunction is scheduled for hearing on September 23, just days before the proposed election date. The court’s decision on the application will determine whether the electoral process proceeds as scheduled while the substantive legal issues remain before the court.
