The All Progressives Congress (APC) has shaken up its 2026 political calendar, extending its nationwide membership e-registration exercise and excluding four states from the forthcoming party congresses.
The ruling party announced that the ongoing e-registration will now run until February 8, 2026, while Rivers State, Osun State, Ekiti State and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) will not participate in the upcoming congresses.
APC National Publicity Secretary, Felix Morka, disclosed this on Friday in Abuja, revealing that the National Convention earlier fixed for March 17 has been shifted to March 27 and 28.
Last year, the party unveiled a detailed roadmap for its 2025/2026 ward, local government, state and zonal congresses, expected to culminate in the National Convention. The membership e-registration was initially scheduled to end on January 30, 2026.
However, Morka said the 183rd meeting of the National Working Committee (NWC) approved an extension to allow more members to register and help the party hit its ambitious membership target.
Flanked by the National Secretary, Ajibola Basiru, and other NWC members, Morka said:
“At the meeting, the National Working Committee of our great party adopted the following resolutions and decisions. First, the Committee resolved to extend the ongoing membership e-registration exercise from January 31, 2026, to February 8, 2026.
“Second, the party will hold its congresses on Wednesday, February 18, 2026, with the National Convention scheduled to take place from March 27 to March 28, 2026.
“However, with respect to the congresses, there will be exceptions for the following states: Osun State, Ekiti State, the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), and Rivers State. These states will be excluded from the upcoming congresses.”
Explaining the exclusions, Morka said Rivers State was left out because off-cycle congresses were held there last year and the tenure of the elected executives is still subsisting. Osun, Ekiti and the FCT, he added, were excluded due to upcoming elections.
He urged party members to intensify mobilisation and fully utilise the extended registration window.
Morka further stated:
“In addition, the National Working Committee approved the composition of the Coordinating Committee for the National Convention. We believe this will be published on Monday, when the full list of members and the chairmanship of that committee will be made available. All changes and adjustments made to the congress schedule will also be published and made available to you on Monday.
“With respect to the exceptions for Osun, Ekiti, the FCT, and Rivers State, there are two explanations. First, Osun State, Ekiti State and the FCT have upcoming elections. These states are exempted to allow those elections to take place. Congress in those states will be scheduled subsequently, after the elections.
“With respect to Rivers State, you will recall that the party conducted off-cycle congresses in Rivers State last year. The tenure of the executives elected at that congress is still subsisting. Therefore, we must wait for that tenure to expire before scheduling fresh congresses in Rivers State.
“On the extension of the e-registration exercise, there is a simple explanation. We want more members to register. We are responding to the clamour by enthusiastic members who are eager to register, and the extension is to give them more time.”
Also speaking, the National Secretary said the e-registration exercise has exceeded expectations, stressing that the extension was not due to poor turnout.
He said:
“Yes, and we are already above that figure. We are doing very well. In line with our efforts to digitise everything about our party, applications for the upcoming congresses will also be available online. This is the first of its kind.
“We are innovating rapidly, and we believe this sets us apart. With regard to the e-registration exercise, there are two essential requirements: the registrant must provide a name and a Voter Identification Number (VIN).
“What APC is doing is ensuring that its members are financially inclusive, enabling them to own assets and benefit from various interventions by government and international organisations. How can one be a member of a political party without being a registered voter? The best way to show support for your party is the ability to vote. These two requirements are mandatory and are being complied with.
“When I was here about a week ago, I stated that we would cross the seven-million mark. We have crossed that mark, and by the grace of God, by the time registration closes on February 8, we expect to cross 12.5 million members.”
