- Ahead of the primary elections scheduled for Thursday, May 21, 2026, severe resistance to consensus arrangements has broken out in at least 10 states as various power brokers refuse to step down.
- The All Progressives Congress (APC) pulled in ₦5.05 billion from the sale of forms to 101 governorship contenders across the country, charging ₦10 million for expression of interest forms and ₦40 million for nomination forms.
- While 11 sitting governors successfully secured total consensus backing for their second-term bids, high-stakes succession battles are breaking out in major political hubs including Kwara, Oyo, Lagos, Plateau, and Bauchi.
The All Progressives Congress is facing an internal test of party discipline as dozens of influential politicians move to bypass consensus mandates imposed by regional party structures.
Eko Hot Blog reports that investigations conducted across the federation show that attempts by party leaders and governors to streamline the upcoming Thursday primaries have triggered intense resistance.
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With 28 states preparing to select their party flagbearers for upcoming regional executives, the national leadership is bracing for direct primary showdowns in chapters where aspirants have vocally demanded an open, democratic test of popularity over prearranged endorsements.
The financial stakes of the electoral cycle remain remarkably high, with the ruling party capitalizing heavily on the ambitions of its members.
By raking in billions of naira from over a hundred hopefuls, the national secretariat has solidified its institutional chest but faces the difficult task of managing the grievances of those who paid premium fees only to be pressured into stepping down.
In states like Kwara, the friction has reached an absolute peak where 14 separate contenders are actively mobilizing to challenge Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq’s public endorsement of businessman Ambassador Yahaya Seriki, insisting that the ultimate ticket must be decided by registered party voters at the open polls.
Similar succession dramas are playing out in Lagos State, where the political ecosystem continues to shift around Deputy Governor Obafemi Hamzat.
Although high-profile figures like Samuel Ajose and former PDP candidate Abdul-Azeez Adediran (Jandor) have publicly withdrawn from the race following consultations with President Bola Tinubu, other wealthy figures like Lanre Jim-Kamal have refused to yield their ambitions, setting up a competitive dynamic in the commercial capital.
In the North, the internal divisions are equally deep, with retired military officer Yilcini Bida dismissing false rumors of his withdrawal in Plateau State, explicitly declaring his readiness to directly challenge the incumbent executive structures on Thursday morning.
Conversely, the party leadership has successfully stabilized the political pipeline in 11 key states by solidifying unchallenged consensus platforms for their respective executives.
In states like Delta, Kano, Katsina, Sokoto, and Kebbi, local chieftains confirmed that all internal factions had collectively agreed to ratify sole candidates to avoid expensive legal disputes and destructive media wars ahead of general campaign cycles.
National analysts warn that while the consensus strategy successfully preserves surface stability in compliant states, forcing similar packages onto resistant chapters could fragment local bases and create critical structural weaknesses that rival political parties will look to exploit.
