SPOTTED: Another ADA emerges as INEC lists 110 party registration applications

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has received letters of intent from two different political associations seeking registration under the acronym “ADA”.

The associations are the Advanced Democratic Alliance (ADA), led by Ahmadu Suleiman as protem chairman and Zipporah Pus Miracle as secretary, and the All Democratic Alliance (ADA), backed by a coalition of opposition figures including Atiku Abubakar, the former vice-resident, and Nasir el-Rufai, ex-governor of Kaduna state.

The All Democratic Alliance listed Akin Ricketts and Abdullahi Musa Elayo as its protem chairman and secretary, respectively.

INEC confirmed on Wednesday that it has received 110 letters of intent from groups seeking registration as political parties.

Mahmood Yakubu, the INEC chairman, told journalists in Abuja that the commission is reviewing the submissions in line with established procedures.

“As of Monday, 23rd June 2025, the commission has received letters of intent from 110 associations that wish to register as political parties. We are dilligently processing the requests in line with the procedure outlined in the law as well as our regulations and guidelines,” he said.

“We have acknowledged all requests received so far except six of them received recently which will be done before the end of the week.”

Yakubu said those interested in registering new political parties should refer to the handbook containing the regulations and guidelines for political parties 2022 on the commission’s website.

The emergence of two associations with the same acronym “ADA” has drawn parallels to a similar situation in 2013, when INEC rejected the application of the African Peoples Congress (APC) due to its name similarity with the All Progressives Congress (APC).

At the time, the commission cited a violation of section 222(a) of the 1999 constitution, which requires associations to submit the names and addresses of national officers as part of the registration process.

INEC’s rejection of the African Peoples Congress was confirmed in a letter dated March 21, 2013, signed by the commission’s then secretary, Abdulahi Kaugama.

The letter stated that the association’s application failed to include the required information and, as such, could not be registered.

In the current scenario, INEC has not indicated whether either ADA group has met the minimum constitutional requirements, but officials have said all applications must comply fully with the law.

Sam Olumekun, the national commissioner and chairman of the information and voter education committee, clarified that what INEC has received so far are “expressions of interest” and not “formal applications for registration”.

The 2022 INEC regulations on political party registration remain the guiding document for associations seeking recognition. Interested groups have been advised to consult the handbook available on the commission’s website to ensure compliance.

With the 2027 general election cycle gradually unfolding, the processing of new political party applications is expected to intensify. It is unclear how INEC will resolve the acronym overlap or whether either faction will be asked to modify its name.