The All Progressives Congress is battling to hold itself together as the fallout from its primary elections spills into courtrooms, defections, and open factional warfare across more than a dozen states, barely months to the 2027 general election.
The trouble resurfaced after the Independent National Electoral Commission published the official list of governorship candidates and their running mates on Saturday. The list, contained in Form EC9 and pasted at INEC offices nationwide, was meant to settle, once and for all, who would carry each party's flag. For the APC, it instead reopened old wounds.
The party's governorship primaries, held in May, had already left a trail of aggrieved aspirants. Now that INEC has made the outcome official, many of those grievances are hardening into lawsuits, walkouts, and, in some cases, complete defections to rival parties.
Party Leadership Moves to Contain the Damage
APC's National Publicity Director, Bala Ibrahim, told journalists that the National Working Committee has been holding back-to-back meetings to douse the tension, insisting the party must sort out its internal disputes before facing the ballot.
"The party is taking reconciliation seriously because we have to go to the battlefield united," Ibrahim said. "We are extending an olive branch to those who did not get what they wanted at the first attempt. If you don't get what you want today, it doesn't mean you won't get it tomorrow."
Not every state is bleeding equally. Gombe and Bayelsa have managed relative calm, leaning on structured reconciliation efforts and existing political arrangements. But in Yobe, Kwara, Nasarawa, Benue, Ebonyi, Kebbi, Sokoto, Edo, Imo, and Adamawa, the story is different — court cases, walkouts, and rival factions are piling pressure on the ruling party's structure.
Gombe Sets Up a Peace Committee
Governor Muhammadu Yahaya has inaugurated a 25-member reconciliation panel, headed by his deputy, Manassah Jatau, to calm nerves after the state's congresses, primaries, and local government polls.
"We need to sheath our swords and embrace dialogue so that we can put our house in order as the 2027 general elections draw closer. Our strength lies in our unity," Yahaya told party members, while setting the ambitious target of one million votes for President Bola Tinubu in the state come 2027.
Yobe: A Primary Result Heads to Court
In Yobe, aspirant Mustapha Maihaja is fighting the outcome of the May 21 primary that handed the ticket to Alhaji Baba Wali, who polled 236,711 votes to succeed Governor Mai Mala Buni. Maihaja's lawyers argue the exercise flouted the party's own guidelines, and nine of a promised 62 witnesses have already testified before the Federal High Court in Damaturu. The matter returns to court on September 7, 8, and 9.
Wali, meanwhile, has appealed to his rivals to close ranks, even as the opposition African Democratic Congress declares it is ready to seize the moment. Political analyst Abdulwahab Garba, however, believes the APC remains the favourite regardless of the internal noise.
Nasarawa Loses a Former Police Chief
Former Inspector-General of Police Mohammed Adamu has dumped the APC for the Social Democratic Party after losing the governorship primary, citing a breakdown in internal democracy. Another aspirant, Prof. Mohammed Haruna, has rejected the outcome outright, alleging manipulation in favour of eventual candidate Ahmed Aliyu Wadada, backed by claims of missing materials and partisan officials at polling points.
State APC Chairman Aliyu Bello has waved off the defection, insisting the party's grassroots strength will carry it through. "Brooms can be burnt, but the achievements and impacts of our party in the state and the ideology behind the broom cannot be burnt," he said.
Benue: A Godfather Battle Plays Out in Court
Perhaps the most bitter fight is in Benue, where a substitution war between camps loyal to Governor Hyacinth Alia and Secretary to the Government of the Federation George Akume has landed in court. House of Assembly aspirant Sesugh Kaaba is asking the Federal High Court in Abuja to bar INEC and the APC from recognising candidates who did not emerge from monitored primaries, listing Alia, former governor Gabriel Suswam, Benjamin Aber, and Francis Ottah Agbo as the rightful winners. Justice Inyang Ekwo has fixed October 12 for judgment.
Suswam has since been replaced on the party's list by Senator Emmanuel Udende, while Aber Terseer was swapped for Senator Titus Zam, among six other reported substitutions. The fallout has already claimed a defection: former Benue Assembly Majority Leader Terseer Sater has left for the Accord Party.
Adamawa: Allegations of Candidates Handed Down, Not Elected
APC chieftain Abubakar Gambo alleges several candidates, including Laori Kwamoti, James Barka, and Zakaria Nyampa, were simply adopted with no primaries held at all. The anger has pushed former senatorial candidate Peter Fwa and Vrati Zonzo to the Labour Party, while PDP's governorship candidate Maurice Vunobolki cited fear of imposition as his reason for abandoning the APC. Publicity Secretary Dogo Victor insists talks with aggrieved members are yielding results, though analyst Gambo Mohammed describes the party as being in disarray.
Kebbi and Sokoto: Senators Walk Out
Senator Garba Maidoki left the APC for the ADC in Kebbi after being screened out of the senatorial primary, following an earlier withdrawal by Senator Bala Ibn Na'Allah, who alleged the race was predetermined. In Sokoto, Governor Ahmed Aliyu secured the governorship ticket by consensus, but the party has still lost Representative Isah Ambarura to the ADC, alongside reports of mass defections in Goronyo.
Kwara: A Senator Defects, a G15 Emerges
The May 22 primary that produced Assembly Speaker Yakubu Danladi-Salihu as governorship candidate triggered rejection from a bloc of aggrieved aspirants calling themselves the G15. The party's bigger blow came when Senator Saliu Mustapha resigned and secured the Kwara Central senatorial ticket under the PDP, setting up a fresh contest with outgoing Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq. Former Senate President Bukola Saraki has been enlisted by the PDP to court the rest of the G15. Deputy Chairman Abdullahi Samari insists the APC is "still in charge," but analyst Abdulrasaq Olanrewaju warns continued defections could hand the PDP "a brighter road to victory."
Imo: Two Political Heavyweights Head to Court
Senator Ifeanyi Araraume and former Governor Rochas Okorocha are separately challenging the senatorial tickets awarded to Senator Patrick Ndubueze and Governor Hope Uzodimma respectively. Party spokesman Jones Onwuasoanya has dismissed both suits as "frivolous," claiming over 98 percent of the party's 200-plus aspirants accepted the primary results. "There is no dispute. The party is intact," he said.
Ebonyi: A Governor-Minister Rift
A legal fight over the Afikpo/Edda federal constituency ticket has exposed a rift between Governor Francis Nwifuru and Minister of Works David Umahi, whose camps reportedly ran parallel primaries with conflicting results. Incumbent lawmaker Idu Igariwey is challenging the candidacy of Joseph Ekumankama, who replaced him on the final list; judgment is expected September 9.
Bayelsa and Edo: Comparatively Calm, but Watching
Bayelsa's APC says it has avoided major upheaval by using direct primaries under the Option A4 system alongside zoning arrangements, though the state chairman declined to reveal the party's full strategy for managing dissent. In Edo, defeated senatorial aspirants Neda Imasuen and Osagie Ize-Iyamu have reportedly accepted their loss to Omoregie Ogbeide-Ihama, though the opposition ADC claims quiet defections are already underway behind the scenes.
The Bigger Picture
Analysts are split on what it all means. Some believe the APC's structural dominance will absorb the shocks; others warn that the cumulative weight of court cases and defections could chip away at its 2027 prospects state by state. As one analyst put it, the outcome will ultimately hinge less on who leaves and more on which side can mobilise its base most effectively on election day.
