Key points
- President Bola Tinubu has recorded a sweeping victory across several states during the 2026 All Progressives Congress presidential primary election.
- State governors presided over the afternoon exercise, acting under official party mandates to serve as return and collation officers.
- The incumbent president defeated Stanley Osifo, his lone challenger, who recorded zero votes across multiple state chapters.
- Official results showed landslide tallies for the president, including 450,516 votes in Gombe and 280,468 votes in Rivers State.
- Party representatives announced that the president will officially receive his certificate of return and the party flag on Sunday.
Main Story
President Bola Tinubu has recorded a sweeping victory across several states as the All Progressives Congress (APC) held its 2026 presidential primary election on Saturday.
The exercise, which gathered momentum in the afternoon in most states, was presided over by governors who were officially mandated by the party to serve as collation officers.
In many of the results already announced, the president defeated Stanley Osifo, his lone challenger, who recorded zero votes in several states.
In Rivers state, Tinubu polled 280,468 votes, while Osifo recorded zero votes across the 23 LGAs of the state, according to Siminalayi Fubara, governor of the state.
To validate the grassroots mobilization behind the administration’s policy direction, similar landslide outcomes were reported across northern and southern chapters.
In Gombe State, Governor Muhammadu Yahaya announced that Tinubu polled 450,516 votes while Osifo recorded zero votes out of the state’s 550,516 registered party members. In Zamfara State, Governor Dauda Lawal declared the president winner after he secured 321,579 votes against the 42 votes recorded by Osifo.
Meanwhile, in Osun State, Tinubu secured 100,880 votes in an exercise described as peaceful by Adegboyega Oyetola, Minister of Marine and Blue Economy, who served as the state collation officer.
Furthermore, the president recorded a clean sweep in Ebonyi, securing all 207,579 valid votes cast across the 13 LGAs, while his rival got zero votes. In Kwara, Governor Abdulrahman AbdulRazaq announced that Tinubu polled 310,990 votes out of the accredited voters who participated in the process.
The president also received strong structural affirmations from states whose final results were still being collated, with Kaduna Governor Uba Sani and Imo Governor Hope Uzodimma noting massive grassroots turnout.
Following the nationwide exercise, the party announced that the Presidential Primary Elections Committee will present the president with his certificate of return and the official party flag on Sunday in Abuja.
The Issues
- Securing near-unanimous primary victories raises critical questions regarding internal competition within the ruling party structures.
- Organizing electronic membership registration and verification tools requires robust digital systems to manage millions of grassroots entries.
- Coordinating nationwide collation pools across hundreds of political wards demands absolute transparency from state returning officers.
What’s Being Said
- Minister of Marine and Blue Economy Adegboyega Oyetola stated that “This impressive turnout is not only historic but also a resounding affirmation of the confidence reposed by members of our party in the leadership, vision and Renewed Hope Agenda of His Excellency, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, GCFR”.
- Imo State Governor Hope Uzodimma expressed strong institutional support, maintaining that “Look at what has happened at the grassroots, how it has been stimulated, starting from the membership registration, which was done electronically, to the validation of members.”
- Highlighting the long-term electoral implications, he added that “In just one ward, we had 35,000 people. It means that if only our party members vote for President Tinubu, he has already won the election.”
- In a post on X, Bayo Onanuga, Tinubu’s senior special adviser on information and strategy, confirmed that “President Tinubu to be presented by APC with certificate of return, party’s flag as the 2027 presidential candidate.”
- Official media statements noted that “The Presidential Primary Elections Committee will present the certificate and flag at the Bola Ahmed Tinubu International Conference Centre in Abuja after nationwide collation of the primary election results.”
What’s Next
- Party executives and stalwarts will gather at the Bola Ahmed Tinubu International Conference Centre in Abuja for the formal presentation ceremony.
- The APC National Working Committee will finalize the documentation of the nationwide primary outcomes to submit to the independent electoral commission.
- Campaign strategists will transition from internal party mobilization into structuring the regional campaign machinery for the 2027 general elections.
Bottom Line
Presided over by state governors and yielding near-total vote counts against lone challenger Stanley Osifo, the APC presidential primary has handed President Bola Tinubu a decisive landslide victory across Nigeria, clearing his path to formally receive the party’s 2027 flag in Abuja.
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