The All Progressives Congress (APC) has officially pegged the cost of nomination and expression of interest forms for aspirants seeking to contest chairmanship positions in the 2026 Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Area Council elections at a total of ₦20 million.
The announcement was made public on Tuesday via a statement shared on the party’s verified X (formerly Twitter) account and signed by its National Organising Secretary, Sulaiman Argungu. The statement also outlined the party’s schedule of activities and timetable for the highly anticipated local elections.
According to the breakdown provided, the Expression of Interest (EoI) form for chairmanship aspirants will cost ₦5 million, while the Nomination form is priced at ₦15 million, bringing the total to ₦20 million.
For aspirants contesting councillorship seats, the APC fixed the cost at ₦2.5 million, comprising ₦500,000 for the EoI form and ₦2 million for the Nomination form.
Concessions for Women, Youths, and Persons with Disabilities
In an apparent effort to promote inclusion and broaden participation, the party introduced waivers and discounts for specific categories of aspirants. Female aspirants and persons living with disabilities (PWDs) will only be required to pay for the Expression of Interest forms, while their Nomination forms will be issued free of charge. In addition, young aspirants aged between 25 and 40 years will be eligible for a 50% discount on the cost of the Nomination form. Key Dates Ahead of the 2026 FCT Polls.The APC announced that the sale of forms will commence on Thursday, May 22, 2025, and will close on Wednesday, May 28, 2025. Screening of aspirants is scheduled for Monday, June 16, 2025, while party primaries are slated for Wednesday, June 25, 2025.
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INEC Confirms Election Date
The party’s preparations come in response to the timetable released earlier this year by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), which fixed the next FCT Area Council elections for February 21, 2026.
INEC Chairman, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, had made the announcement during a consultative meeting with political parties, reiterating that the tenure of the current chairmen and councillors will end in February 2026—exactly four years after the last Area Council elections held on February 21, 2022.
As political activity intensifies ahead of the polls, analysts expect the APC’s pricing structure to spark debate over the affordability of political participation and the inclusivity of grassroots governance.
