Party primaries were scheduled for between 4 April and 9 June 2022 with the All Progressives Congress nominating Deputy Governor Nasir Yusuf Gawuna on 26 May while the New Nigeria Peoples Party nominated former commissioner Abba Kabir Yusuf on 6 June.[5] For the Peoples Democratic Party, two separate parallel primaries were held on 25 May with one primary nominating Mohammed Abacha—the son and bagman of former military dictatorSani Abacha—while the other primary picked former commissioner Sadiq Wali;[6][7][8] about a month after the primaries, INEC recognized Abacha as the legitimate nominee but switched recognition to Wali by July.[9][10] Recognition returned to Abacha in December due to the ruling of a Federal High Court, but returned to Wali due to a Court of Appeal judgment in February 2023.[11][12]