08/09/2026
2027: Atiku, Seven North-West ADC Guber Candidates Hold Abuja Talks
Former Vice President and presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress, ADC, Atiku Abubakar, has met with the party’s seven governorship candidates from the North-West geopolitical zone at his Abuja residence, in what signals an intensification of political consultations ahead of the 2027 general elections.
The meeting brought together the ADC governorship flagbearers from all seven North-West states — Jigawa, Kaduna, Kano, Katsina, Kebbi, Sokoto and Zamfara — at a critical moment as political parties prepare to formally hit the campaign trail.
The seven candidates are Sabo Mohammed Nakudu of Jigawa State, Isa Mohammed Ashiru of Kaduna State, Ibrahim Ali Amin of Kano State, Senator Ahmad Babba Kaita of Katsina State, former Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice Abubakar Malami, SAN, of Kebbi State, Manir Mohammad Daniya of Sokoto State and Shinkafi Bilyaminu Yusuf of Zamfara State. The ADC formally unveiled the candidates as part of its 28 governorship flagbearers for the 2027 elections.
Although details of the closed-door discussions at Atiku’s residence were not immediately made public, the gathering is politically significant given the strategic importance of the North-West, Nigeria’s most populous geopolitical zone and traditionally one of the most fiercely contested electoral battlegrounds.
The meeting places some of the ADC’s strongest political figures in the region around the same table with its presidential flagbearer as the opposition party moves to synchronise its national and state-level campaigns.
Among those at the centre of the emerging battle are Malami in Kebbi, Isa Ashiru in Kaduna and Senator Babba Kaita in Katsina — politicians with established political structures and considerable experience in their respective states.
The ADC had on September 4 formally announced its governorship candidates across 28 states, describing them as the men and women who would carry the party’s banner and present what it called a credible alternative to Nigerians.
Atiku’s engagement with the North-West candidates also comes as the electoral calendar enters a decisive phase. Governorship campaigns are scheduled to commence on September 9, 2026, while the governorship elections are slated for February 6, 2027.
The timing has consequently raised the political stakes around the Abuja meeting, with attention expected to focus on how the ADC intends to coordinate presidential and governorship campaigns, strengthen grassroots structures and maximise votes across the seven North-West states.
Atiku has already emerged as the ADC presidential candidate for the 2027 election, with the party confirming that his name and that of his running mate, former Rivers State Governor Rotimi Amaechi, were submitted to the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC.
For the ADC, the North-West could prove decisive to its presidential ambitions. Bringing all seven governorship candidates into direct consultation with Atiku therefore underscores the growing importance the party appears to be attaching to coordinated regional mobilisation as the race for 2027 moves from internal party contests to the battle for voters.
With the campaign curtain about to rise, the Abuja meeting sends a clear political signal: Atiku and the ADC’s North-West standard-bearers are closing ranks as they prepare for what promises to be one of the most consequential regional battles of the 2027 elections.
Abuja Network News
