Ondo gov poll: All political parties opt for indirect primary

All the 17 political parties that have indicated interest in the Ondo governorship election have opted for indirect primary election.

In a statement, Festus Okoye, spokesman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), said only one of the 18 registered political parties — Boot Party — failed to notify the commission of its intention to conduct primary for the October 10 election.

Unlike direct primary, registered members of the party vote for who they want to be their flag-bearer, while indirect primary involve delegates choosing the party’s candidates on behalf of other members.

While the All Progressives Congress (APC) will conduct its primary election on July 20, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) will hold its from July 22 to July 23.

CALENDEAR OF CONGRESSES/PRIMARIES FOR ONDO STATE 2020 GOVERNORSHIP ELECTIONS. pic.twitter.com/v1fJcLSAwC

— INEC Nigeria (@inecnigeria) July 9, 2020

“Political Parties are reminded that they are required to submit a comprehensive list of all the delegates eligible to participate in the primaries at least 7 days before the scheduled date,” Okoye said.

“The INEC portal for uploading nomination forms will open on 21st July and close on at 6pm on 28th July 2020. We urge Political Parties not to wait till the last day before submitting the names of their nominated candidates.”

Okoye asked the political parties participating in the September 19 governorship election in Edo state to comply with the COVID-19 guidelines.