Former President Goodluck Jonathan has been taken to the Federal High Court in Abuja in a legal effort to prevent him from contesting the 2027 presidential election. The suit, filed by lawyer Johnmary Jideobi, seeks a perpetual injunction restraining Jonathan from presenting himself as a candidate for any political party in Nigeria for the 2027 presidential poll or any future elections.
The plaintiff argues that under Sections 1(1), (2), (3) and 137(3) of the 1999 Nigerian Constitution (as amended), Jonathan is constitutionally ineligible to run again. This is because he was sworn in on May 6, 2010, to complete the late President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua’s term and then subsequently elected to a full term in 2011, meaning he has already served two terms as president.
The suit also calls for the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to be barred from accepting or publishing Jonathan’s name as a candidate, and it requests that the Attorney-General of the Federation enforce any court orders. The case is currently awaiting a hearing date.
Jonathan has not publicly declared his intention to run in 2027, but reports of his possible return have prompted this preemptive constitutional challenge. The lawsuit focuses on the interpretation of the constitutional term limits barring anyone sworn in twice from seeking the presidency again, raising critical questions about the eligibility of former presidents who complete another’s tenure before serving a full term of their own.
This legal development is set to test Nigeria’s constitutional provisions on presidential tenure as the political landscape heats up toward the 2027 general election.