Former Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Isa Ali Pantami, has won the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governorship primary rerun in Gombe State.
Pantami secured 2,054 votes in the direct primary conducted across the state’s 11 local government areas, defeating Khamisu Mailantarki, who polled 389 votes, and Aliyu Usman Garry, who received 112 votes.
The results were collated and announced at the PDP state secretariat in Gombe by the Chairman of the Governorship Primary Rerun Committee, Johnbull Shekarau, who declared Pantami the winner.
The rerun was held following a Federal High Court judgment that nullified the party’s earlier primary, which had produced Pantami as its candidate for the 2027 governorship election.
In a judgment delivered on September 24, 2026, Justice Amina Aliyu directed the PDP to conduct a fresh governorship primary within 30 days.
The court ruled that the earlier exercise did not comply with the party’s internal regulations and relevant provisions of the Electoral Act 2026.
The case followed suits filed by PDP governorship aspirants Mailantarki and Garry, who challenged the process that led to Pantami’s emergence at the party’s initial primary on May 26, 2026.
However, the court declined their request to disqualify Pantami or expel him from the PDP over allegations that he remained a card-carrying member of the All Progressives Congress (APC) at the time.
Following the judgment, the PDP scheduled the fresh primary for September 29 and cleared Pantami, Mailantarki and Garry to contest.
Pantami had initially emerged as the party’s governorship candidate through voice affirmation at the May primary before the process was challenged in court.
