Nigeria Supreme Court will deliver its final judgment today Thursday April 30 2026 at 2 pm in a major political battle over who controls the African Democratic Congress.
The case SC CV 180 2026 will determine the official leadership of the party and whether it can take part fully in the 2027 elections without legal confusion. A five judge panel led by Justice Mohammed Garba heard final arguments on April 22 before setting today for the ruling.
According to new electoral law says courts must stay out of party internal matters and no judges would decide who really runs any political parties. The Supreme Court is expected to apply this rule as part of its final interpretation of the dispute.
The fight is between two main groups inside the party. One side is led by former Senate President David Mark who is asking the court to cancel the Court of Appeal decision of March 12 2026. His position is that the dispute is purely internal party business and the Electoral Act 2026 prevents courts from interfering. He is relying on Section 83 Subsection 5 which states that no court in Nigeria should hear cases involving internal affairs of political parties. His team is also pushing for the Independent National Electoral Commission to stop recognising any rival leadership.
The opposing group is led by Nafiu Bala Gombe who claims his faction is the legitimate leadership of the African Democratic Congress. He argues that the Mark led group took control wrongly and should not be recognised. The case started at the Federal High Court and moved through the appeal process after mixed lower court rulings supported different sides at different stages.
Other people named in the case include Rauf Aregbesola listed as interim national secretary on the Mark side the party itself the Independent National Electoral Commission and former chairman Ralph Nwosu. The Independent National Electoral Commission has already acted based on earlier court orders and suspended recognition of the disputed leadership structure.
David Mark and his legal team have strongly relied on the new Electoral Act 2026 in their arguments. They also sent a letter to the Chief Justice of Nigeria on April 28 warning that any delay could seriously affect the party and block its participation in the next elections. They say millions of members could lose political representation if the matter is not resolved quickly.
The case is listed under political appeals at the Supreme Court alongside other major party disputes including a similar one involving the Peoples Democratic Party. Lawyers for Mark also referenced a Supreme Court position from March 2025 which supports the idea that courts should not interfere in internal party leadership conflicts.
All sides have already filed final written arguments and the judges are expected to give their decision this afternoon. The Electoral Act 2026 was introduced to reduce long court battles inside political parties and stop leadership disputes from being settled repeatedly in court. Today’s ruling will finally decide who controls the African Democratic Congress and whether the party can move into the 2027 election season united and stable.
