•Atiku and ADC logo
With five months to the 2027 general elections, the African Democratic Congress (ADC) says its presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, does not need a coalition to defeat the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).
The ADC National Publicity Secretary, Bolaji Abdullahi, stated this on Channels Television last night while explaining the party’s position following the breakdown of the opposition coalition that had been proposed in 2025 ahead of the forthcoming elections.
According to him, the departure of some key figures from the coalition had changed the political dynamics, but the ADC remained confident in its ability to contest the election independently.
“Now, one of the key leaders in the coalition has gone to the NDC (Nigeria Democratic Congress), that is, His Excellency Peter Obi and, of course, Rabiu Kwankwaso as his running mate. We are in the African Democratic Congress.
“What I am saying is that we don’t need a coalition to win this election. The African Democratic Congress does not need a coalition to win this election. If we are able to do the kind of coalition that we started, it will make our job easier, but we don’t necessarily need the coalition to win the election,” Abdullahi said.
Abdullahi said the coalition was initially conceived to make it easier for the opposition to defeat the APC but acknowledged that the arrangement had not developed as originally expected.
“When we started building this coalition, we started on an assumption that if we were able to build a broad-based coalition, it would make our job of beating the APC easy. That didn’t pan out the way we expected,” he said.
‘Single-handed Victory’
Atiku has run for the presidency in the past. The former vice president, who is running with ex-Rivers governor Rotimi Amaechi, has based his campaign on an economic rescue plan, electoral reforms and opposition unity, including restoring petrol subsidies immediately, gradually removing them after safety nets are in place, fixing local refineries, stabilising the naira and tackling corruption in the subsidy system.
But when Abdullahi was asked about his party’s chances of securing the nation’s top job and whether Atiku could single-handedly lead the ADC to victory without the opposition coalition, he said: “I believe so, and that’s our thinking, and that’s what we are working with.”
However, the ADC spokesman said discussions among opposition political parties were still ongoing, stressing that the focus had shifted from producing a single presidential candidate to identifying areas where the parties could work together.
“We are still having conversations among ourselves, opposition political parties. You’ve heard about the G100; they are mobilising everyone. We are still trying to bring everyone together, but the conversation is not about how we produce a single presidential candidate.
“The conversation predominantly is about what areas of cooperation are possible,” he said.
Opposition Realignment, 2027 Election
Abdullahi’s comments follow efforts by opposition parties and political actors to build an alliance ahead of the 2027 presidential election.
The 2023 presidential election saw the APC’s Bola Tinubu ride on the divided opposition to emerge victorious with over eight million votes, defeating Obi and Atiku with over six million votes each.
Two years after the election, the ADC subsequently emerged as the umbrella platform for a proposed opposition coalition, bringing together prominent political figures and groups seeking to challenge the APC in 2027. Amid the build up, President Tinubu said he is not intimidated by opposition coalitions, insisting his administration remains focused on its economic and institutional reforms.
However, the proposed alliance later faced internal disagreements, leadership disputes, and a series of legal challenges, resulting in a realignment of political forces.
Its key figures, like Obi and Kwankwaso, defected in May to the NDC to become the party flagbearers ahead of the election.
The 2027 battle for the nation’s top job will see a similarity to the 2023 top contestants.
President Tinubu will fly the ruling party’s flag, Atiku will lead the ADC, and Obi is the presidential candidate for the NDC.
Meanwhile, the official campaign season for the general elections opened on Wednesday, August 19, for Presidential and National Assembly candidates.
According to INEC’s timetable, the 2027 general elections will begin on January 16, 2027, with presidential and National Assembly elections. Key dates include the final voter register on January 11, campaign end on February 18, possible runoffs on February 28, and governorship and state assembly elections on March 6.
