ABUJA, FCT — Former Imo State Governor and Senator representing Imo West, Rochas Okorocha, has dragged the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), the All Progressives Congress (APC) and Governor Hope Uzodimma before the Federal High Court in Abuja over the 2027 Imo West Senatorial ticket.
Okorocha is challenging INEC’s publication of Uzodimma’s name as the APC candidate for the Imo West Senatorial District election.
He insisted that he won the party’s primary election and should be recognised as the legitimate candidate.
The suit, marked FHC/ABJ/CS/1854/2026, was filed on August 13, 2026, by Okorocha’s counsel, O. J. Aboje.
The former governor joined Uzodimma and the APC as defendants, alongside INEC.
At the centre of the dispute is the APC senatorial primary conducted on May 18, 2026.
Okorocha contends that he emerged the winner and is asking the court to determine whether INEC was bound by the reports of its officials who monitored the primary.
He is also challenging the constitutional eligibility of Uzodimma to contest the senatorial seat while remaining governor of Imo State.
In the affidavit accompanying the case, Okorocha argues that Uzodimma’s current tenure as governor runs until January 14, 2028, following his inauguration on January 15, 2024.
He contended that the governor would therefore still be in office when the National Assembly elected in 2027 is inaugurated.
Okorocha is consequently asking the Federal High Court to declare the publication of Uzodimma’s name as the APC candidate unlawful and to set it aside.
He further wants an order directing INEC to recognise and publish his name as the duly nominated APC candidate for Imo West in the 2027 election, while restraining Uzodimma from presenting himself as the party’s candidate for the district.
The former governor has also asked the court to award costs against the respondents.
The fresh legal battle adds another chapter to the long-running political rivalry between Okorocha and Uzodimma, two influential figures in Imo politics.
Okorocha served as Imo governor from 2011 to 2019 and subsequently represented Imo West in the Senate from 2019 to 2023.
Uzodimma, meanwhile, has been governor of the state since 2020.
The court’s eventual decision could determine who flies the APC flag in the strategically important Imo West Senatorial District in the 2027 general election.
