Reports from eight of the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory have placed a former Vice President, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar as the aspirant to beat in the presidential primary election of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) for next January’s election.
The intraparty election, which is also being contested by a former Rivers State Governor, Rt. Hon. Rotimi Amaechi; and a renowned economist, Mohammed Hayatu-Deen, was held across the country on Monday.
As at the time of this report, the reports from Gombe, Abia, Ebonyi, Sokoto, Zamfara, Osun, Taraba and Yobe States have been published.
According to the results, which are awaiting announcement by the party’s national leadership, Atiku is maintaining a commanding lead in the early rounds of counting.
In Gombe State, results announced by the Returning Officer, Prof. David Agbu, showed that Atiku polled 139,334 votes. Amaechi came in a distant second with 1,150 votes, while Hayatu-Deen secured 464 votes.
In Abia State, Atiku scored 25,153 votes against Amaechi’s 18,339 votes and Hayatu-Deen’s 3,264 votes.
In Ebonyi State, the ADC National Vice Chairman (Diaspora), Fred Onwe, announced that Atiku secured 15,300 votes, while Amaechi polled 2,200 votes and Hayatu-Deen managed 200 votes.
Atiku polled 68,823 votes in Sokoto State, leaving Amaechi with 292 votes and Hayatu-Deen with 319 votes.
A similar pattern emerged in Zamfara State, where Atiku obtained 60,500 votes. Hayatu-Deen scored 436 votes, while Amaechi secured 191 votes.
Atiku won the contest in Osun State with 12,321 votes, defeating Hayatu-Deen, who polled 4,000 votes, while Amaechi came third with 679 votes.
Atiku also won in Taraba State polling 48,523 againstAmaechi’s 25,150 votes, and Hayatu-Deen’s 8,369 votes.
In Yobe State, Atiku won with 44,841 votes, according to the Chairperson of the Electoral Committee, Hajiya Ma’am Kyari.
She said that Amaechi secured 300 votes, while Hayatu-Deen polled 365 votes.
Kyari described the exercise as peaceful and conducted in line with the party’s guidelines.
The results declared by the committee in charge of the exercise indicated that Atiku won in all the 30 Local Government Areas in the state.
The ongoing primary is seen as a major test of strength within the ADC as opposition parties continue realignments ahead of the 2027 general election. Atiku, who was the presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party in the 2019 and 2023 elections, has remained one of the most influential figures in Nigeria’s opposition politics.
Amaechi, a former Chairman of the Nigeria Governors’ Forum, entered the race promising institutional reforms and stronger internal party democracy, while Hayatu-Deen campaigned on economic restructuring and private sector-driven growth.
