SDP asks Court of Appeal to stay Federal High Court ruling on Osun governorship candidate

The Social Democratic Party (SDP) approaches the Court of Appeal in Abuja to seek a stay of execution of a Federal High Court judgment tied to a leadership and candidate dispute for the 2026 Osun governorship election. The Federal High Court ruling recognises Salawu-Adeniyi Mustapha Olaitan as the SDP’s governorship candidate. SDP says it has filed an appeal against that decision and asks the Court of Appeal to halt the judgment’s enforcement while the appeal is pending.

Vanguard reports that the SDP’s appeal also challenges the Federal High Court’s action as being inconsistent with earlier Supreme Court determinations on party leadership issues. The Daily Post Nigeria similarly reports that the SDP’s application is brought through a motion seeking to stop execution of the Federal High Court judgment until the Court of Appeal determines the substantive appeal.

Both outlets indicate the dispute centres on which individual the party should present as its governorship candidate, and the immediate legal focus is whether the appellate court will order a stay pending the outcome of the appeal.