Reported by Ariajegbe Sylvia Esezobor
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu will formally flag off his 2027 re-election campaign in Kaduna on October 24, 2026, the Director-General of the All Progressives Congress Presidential Campaign Council, Senator Abdulaziz Yari, announced on Friday after briefing the President at the State House in Abuja.
Yari told State House correspondents that the campaign council would hold its inaugural meeting on Wednesday, October 14, 2026, at the State House Banquet Hall, ahead of the Kaduna flag-off ten days later. "By God's grace, his team, I, and Mr President himself, we have agreed on how it's going to be done," Yari said. "We have put forward a proposal. The inaugural meeting is going to be done on the 14th of this month. That's next Wednesday at the State House Banquet Hall, and by God's grace, on the 24th of October, we're going to do our flag-off campaign in Kaduna". He said the campaign would then move to Port Harcourt, Rivers State, followed by Maiduguri, Borno State, with the full state-by-state itinerary to be released after the council's inauguration. "We have the timetable, and we are going to make it available after the inauguration," he said.
The choice of Kaduna as the launching pad is significant. The North-West state is one of Nigeria's most populous and politically consequential, and it delivered a substantial vote to Tinubu in 2023. Governor Uba Sani has repeatedly pledged that Kaduna will deliver overwhelming support for the President in 2027, saying the state owes Tinubu a debt of gratitude for federal investments in infrastructure and development. In August 2026, Sani declared that the 2027 election was already concluded and that the North would give Tinubu 95 per cent of its votes. The Kaduna flag-off is intended to signal that the President retains strong support in the region that forms the backbone of his electoral coalition. The campaign's subsequent stops in Port Harcourt and Maiduguri suggest an intention to project national reach, engaging the South-South and North-East regions where the APC's support has been contested in previous elections. Port Harcourt is particularly significant given the political influence of the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, who has been leading Tinubu's campaign in Rivers State and has publicly staked his ministerial position on delivering the state for the President.
Yari used the occasion to dismiss the threat posed by the opposition, singling out former Vice President Atiku Abubakar of the African Democratic Congress and former Anambra Governor Peter Obi of the Nigeria Democratic Congress. He argued that winning the presidency required political support across both the northern and southern regions, and that neither Atiku nor Obi possessed the geographic spread necessary to unseat the President. "Can the ADC candidate today in the southern part of the country beat his chest and say he has control of one state in the South?" Yari asked. "And I don't think Peter Obi, who used to be my colleague, can beat his chest. Can he say he has control of one state in northern Nigeria?" He cited the electoral history of former President Muhammadu Buhari, who won overwhelming support in the North but could not secure the presidency until he built a broader national alliance. "Look at Buhari of blessed memory. He had control of over 70 per cent at that time, over 11 states in the North, and had no control of one in the South. He couldn't make it all the way," Yari said. By contrast, he claimed that Tinubu controls more than ten states in each region, describing the spread of support as an important consideration in the party's electoral strategy.
The Director-General also defended the administration's record, saying the President had taken steps to address the challenges inherited when he assumed office in May 2023. "President Bola Tinubu, since the time he assumed office, has turned around the situation that he met on the ground. Still, the economy is moving," he said. He said the campaign would focus on the administration's record rather than rely solely on promises. "We are not promising. We are doing it, and we are going to continue," he added.
The announcement comes amid a charged political environment. The 2027 general elections are scheduled for January 16, with the governorship and state assembly elections following on February 6. President Tinubu is seeking a second term on the APC platform, while Atiku is contesting on the ADC ticket with former Rivers State Governor Rotimi Amaechi as his running mate, Obi is flying the flag of the NDC with Senator Rabiu Kwankwaso, and Oyo State Governor Seyi Makinde is running on the Allied Peoples Movement platform. The National Peace Committee has warned political actors against inflammatory campaigns after recording 60 election-related incidents within one month, including political violence, intimidation, threats and misinformation. The committee, led by former Head of State General Abdulsalami Abubakar and Bishop Matthew Kukah, has directed parties, candidates and their supporters to immediately stop false, inflammatory or inciting communication and to uphold the commitments made under the National Peace Accord signed in August.
The political landscape has been further complicated by the APC's internal dynamics, including the dispute over the FCT Minister's Rainbow Coalition, which has divided the party's support base. The Progressive Governors' Forum has rejected the coalition, while Wike has insisted it is a vehicle for the President's re-election and not an APC structure. The campaign's ability to manage these internal tensions while presenting a united front will be tested as the state visits begin.
The coming weeks will determine whether the campaign's message resonates with voters who have endured three years of economic hardship, including high fuel prices, food inflation and rising transport costs. The Federal Government has announced a 30-day petrol discount through NNPC Limited and proposed a ceiling on the ex-gantry cost of petrol, measures designed to ease the cost-of-living burden and provide relief ahead of the elections. Whether those measures are sufficient to persuade voters to renew the President's mandate will be tested at the polls. For now, the campaign machinery is in motion, the timetable has been approved, and the APC is preparing to make its case to the Nigerian people. As Yari put it, the President's supporters are ready, the schedule is set, and the campaign will hit the ground running on October 24.
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