The All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) plans to support President Bola Tinubu's re-election bid, prompting a dispute with a rival party leader over southeastern voters' role in Nigeria's 2027 presidential race.
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) names Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) presidential candidate Peter Obi and his running mate, Musa Mohammed Rabiu Kwankwaso, in its final candidate list.
In an ARISE News interview, APGA national chairman Sylvester Ezeokenwa said his party would try to persuade voters in Nigeria's southeast to support Tinubu. He argued that ties with the party holding federal power served the region's interests and said Obi had no path to victory.
Ezeokenwa traced APGA's policy of maintaining those ties to 2011. He presented cooperation with the governing party as a way to preserve APGA's influence and give the southeast greater access to national power, arguing that political isolation had cost the region.
Angel Network News reported that NDC Anambra chairman Ikem Uzoezie rejected Ezeokenwa's assessment. Uzoezie argued that hardship, insecurity and unemployment could increase support for a change of government and help Obi win.
The dispute has a history in Anambra. Obi governed the state under APGA before running for president as the Labour Party's candidate in 2023. INEC's report on that election records a third-place finish for Obi with 6,101,533 votes.
INEC's current calendar schedules the presidential election for Jan. 16, 2027.
