2027: Court Clears Jonathan To Contest Presidential Election

The Federal High Court in Abuja has cleared former President Goodluck Jonathan to contest the 2027 presidential election, dismissing a suit that sought to permanently bar him from seeking the nation’s highest office on constitutional grounds.

Justice Peter Lifu delivered the judgment on Tuesday in suit marked FHC/ABJ/CS/2102/2025, holding that Jonathan remained eligible to participate in the 2027 race as a presidential contestant.

The suit was filed by Johnmary Jideobi, an Abuja-based lawyer, who asked the court to interpret Sections 1(1), (2), (3) and 137(3) of the 1999 Constitution to determine whether former President Goodluck Jonathan had already exhausted the constitutional limit for a Nigerian president.

Jonathan was first sworn in on May 6, 2010, following the death of President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua, and was again sworn in on May 29, 2011, after winning that year’s election.

On this basis, there had been claims that a victory in 2027 would amount to a third oath of office and could potentially exceed the constitutionally permitted maximum of eight years in office.

Jideobi had sought a perpetual injunction restraining Jonathan from presenting himself to any political party for nomination as a presidential candidate in 2027 or any future election, and a separate order barring INEC from accepting, processing or publishing his name as a candidate.

The Attorney-General of the Federation, listed as a defendant in the matter, aligned squarely with Jonathan throughout the proceedings and urged the court to dismiss the suit, with both sides also opposing a motion that sought the recusal of Justice Lifu over allegations of bias.

INEC, also listed as a defendant, was absent from the proceedings and had no legal representation in court.

Tuesday’s judgment comes amid growing political activity around Jonathan’s potential return to the presidential arena.

The Kabiru Tanimu Turaki faction of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) had last week cleared Jonathan to contest the presidential election slated for 2027, offering him a waiver as the party’s sole presidential candidate, a move that gave the eligibility question renewed urgency ahead of today’s ruling.

Jonathan served as Nigeria’s president from 2010, when he was sworn in to complete the remainder of Yar’Adua’s term, before winning a full term in 2011 and conceding defeat to Muhammadu Buhari in the 2015 election.


Whether those circumstances amount to one term or two has been the central legal dispute now resolved by Justice Lifu in his favour.