A faction of the Nigeria Democratic Congress in Enugu State has conducted a parallel governorship primary election and declared James Ene‑Nwannaji as its candidate for the 2027 governorship election.
The exercise was organised by a faction led by Johnpaul Ani, while another faction of the party had yet to announce the outcome of its own primary election.
Announcing the results, factional secretary Sebastine Okafor said Ene-Nwannaji emerged victorious after defeating other aspirants, including Chinyeaka Ohaa and Gilbert Nnaji.
According to party officials, the primary election was conducted across the 17 local government areas of the state in line with directives from the party’s national leadership, with monitoring by the Independent National Electoral Commission.
In the senatorial primaries, Chika Obetta secured the ticket for Enugu North Senatorial District, while Celelia Ikechukwu emerged candidate for Enugu East Senatorial District. Ugochi Ohajekwe won the party’s ticket for Enugu West Senatorial District.
For the House of Representatives elections, candidates who emerged include Stephen Ugwoke, Chimezie Nwodo, Kene Nnadi, Felix Ijegalu and Onyebuchi Nwabueze.
The faction stated that candidates for the remaining House of Representatives and State Assembly positions would be announced later.
Speaking after the exercise, Ani described the primaries as peaceful, transparent and compliant with the Electoral Act 2026 and the party’s guidelines. He urged unsuccessful aspirants to accept the outcome and work together ahead of the 2027 general elections, expressing confidence that the party’s candidates were well-positioned for victory.
