President Bola Tinubu has emerged as the presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress for the 2027 general election after securing an overwhelming victory in the party’s nationwide direct primary election.
The results announced at the President Bola Ahmed Tinubu International Conference Centre in Abuja showed Tinubu polling nearly 11 million votes to defeat his only challenger, Stanley Osifo, by a massive margin.
Chairman and Returning Officer of the APC Presidential Primary Election Committee, former Senate President Pius Anyim, declared Tinubu winner after the conclusion of the nationwide collation exercise conducted across the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory.
According to Anyim, the primary election was held in 8,809 wards and 774 local government areas nationwide, with millions of party members participating in the exercise.
Official figures released by the committee showed that over 12.6 million APC members were registered for the primary, while more than 11 million members were accredited to vote.
Tinubu eventually secured about 10.99 million votes, while Osifo polled slightly above 16,000 votes nationwide.
“It is therefore my duty as the Returning Officer for this primary election to declare President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, having satisfied the requirements of the APC constitution and guidelines and scored the highest number of votes, as the winner of the primary election and elected as the party’s presidential candidate,” Anyim announced.
The declaration triggered celebrations among party supporters and delegates gathered at the Abuja venue, with chants of “On your mandate we shall stand” and “Stand up for the champion” echoing across the hall.
Tinubu arrived at the collation centre alongside Vice President Kashim Shettima and First Lady Oluremi Tinubu to a rousing reception from party loyalists and senior officials.
The President recorded commanding victories across the six geopolitical zones, including key APC strongholds in the South-West and North-West.
In Lagos State, Tinubu polled more than 814,000 votes, while Ogun, Kaduna, Kano, Katsina, Delta, Imo and Akwa Ibom also returned large figures in his favour during the exercise.
Osifo, his lone challenger, recorded marginal votes in a handful of states and failed to secure votes in several others.
Earlier, APC National Chairman Nentawe Yilwatda described the exercise as peaceful, transparent and well coordinated.
Yilwatda said the ruling party worked closely with state chapters and technical committees to ensure what he called a credible and inclusive primary process.
He also commended party members and stakeholders for maintaining unity during the exercise, adding that the successful conduct of the primary had strengthened confidence in the APC’s internal democratic structures.
The outcome effectively clears the way for Tinubu to seek a second term in office in the 2027 presidential election, where he is expected to face candidates from opposition parties including the PDP and Labour Party.
Tinubu, who won the 2023 presidential election and assumed office on May 29, 2023, has repeatedly defended his administration’s economic reforms despite growing public concerns over inflation, fuel subsidy removal and the rising cost of living.
Political observers say the scale of the APC primary victory is likely to reinforce Tinubu’s grip on the ruling party ahead of what is expected to be another fiercely contested election cycle in Nigeria.
