President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s 2027 re-election bid has support from an opposition party figure, while All Progressives Congress (APC) governors say they will campaign only for their party’s candidates, exposing competing election alliances.
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has scheduled presidential and National Assembly elections for Jan. 16, 2027, followed by governorship and State House of Assembly elections on Feb. 6. INEC’s updated candidate list names Tinubu for the APC, former Vice President Atiku Abubakar for the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Peter Gregory Obi for the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), and Sandy Ojang Onor for the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
The State House said Federal Capital Territory Minister Nyesom Wike, whom it identified as a PDP leader, backed Tinubu’s re-election at the Oct. 14 inauguration of the APC’s Presidential Campaign Council. Premium Times reported that a statement from Wike aide Lere Olayinka described the Rainbow Coalition as a cross-party channel for Tinubu’s presidential campaign. The statement said the coalition did not prevent the PDP from fielding candidates for governorship, National Assembly and State House of Assembly contests.
TheCable reported that Hope Uzodimma, chairman of the Progressive Governors Forum, said APC governors would oppose alliances they believed could weaken their party or its candidates. Uzodimma said the governors’ campaign commitment covered APC candidates. The public positions leave open how support for a presidential candidate will interact with competition for state and legislative offices.
Columnist Wole Olaoye framed the contest as a “Rumble in the Political Jungle” in a Nov. 2 opinion column. He argues that party disputes and shifting alliances will shape the race, with political figures seeking influence and rewards within winning parties. His metaphor refers to the Ali-Foreman fight in Kinshasa on Oct. 30, 1974: Muhammad Ali stopped George Foreman in the eighth round. Kinshasa was then in Zaire.
INEC’s current calendar places the presidential and National Assembly vote on Jan. 16, 2027, and state elections on Feb. 6.
