By Anifa Oluwapelumi;
As the race for the 2027 governorship election officially begins, the name of the current Speaker of the Kwara State House of Assembly and winner of the APC primary in the state, Rt. Hon. Yakubu Danladi Salihu, has been cleared and uploaded on the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) portal.
Recall that the APC primary was greeted with internal crises in Kwara, as it was in several other states across the federation. The outcome of the exercise sparked sharp resistance from aggrieved party stakeholders and high-profile primary aspirants, who openly questioned the credibility of the process.
For weeks, rumor mills and discontented party factions, notably the coalition known as the G-15 APC Movement, insisted that Danladi’s nomination was far from a done deal. Opponents argued that the Speaker was primarily a candidate backed by the incumbent governor, rather than a popular consensus choice across the state’s three senatorial districts. Rumors circulated widely among dissatisfied members that the APC national leadership would ultimately replace Danladi with a more widely accepted figure to avert a major crisis ahead of the main election.
However, the upload of Danladi’s particulars to the INEC portal has effectively shut down all speculation, confirming him as the party’s sole and official standard-bearer for Kwara State.
The resolution in Kwara is part of a broader national rollout by the APC National Secretariat, which has now finalized and uploaded the profiles of its governorship flagbearers in 27 out of 28 states holding elections.
In other states where post-primary protests similarly threatened party cohesion, the ruling party has likewise locked in its candidates. In Oyo State, Senator Sharafadeen Alli’s name was uploaded alongside his running mate, Adesoji Adedeji, overcoming stiff resistance and post-primary challenges from former Minister of Power, Adebayo Adelabu. In Bauchi State, former Governor Mohammed Abubakar secured official clearance on the portal, despite an internal revolt that prompted Senator Shehu Umar Buba to defect to the PDP. Meanwhile, in Adamawa State, former PTDF Executive Secretary Ahmed Tijani Galadima emerged as the official candidate after key party factions closed ranks.
The portal update also confirmed key first-time candidates and political heavyweights across the country, including Obafemi Hamzat (Lagos), Solomon Adeola (Ogun), Kingsley Chinda (Rivers), Eric Opah (Abia), Mustapha Gubio (Borno), Jamilu Gwamna (Gombe), Aliyu Wadada (Nasarawa), Baba Malam Wali (Yobe), Hyacinth Alia (Benue), Bassey Otu (Cross River), Sheriff Oborevwori (Delta), Francis Nwifuru (Ebonyi), Peter Mbah (Enugu), Umar Namadi (Jigawa), Abba Yusuf (Kano), Dikko Radda (Katsina), Umar Bago (Niger), Nasir Idris (Kebbi), Caleb Mutfwang (Plateau), Umo Eno (Akwa Ibom), Dauda Lawal (Zamfara), and Ahmed Aliyu (Sokoto).
With over 60 percent of House of Assembly candidates also uploaded ahead of the statutory deadline, the administrative battle has officially ended. For Speaker Yakubu Danladi and the governor’s camp, the immediate challenge now shifts to placating aggrieved factions within Kwara and rallying a divided party as campaign activities heat up.
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