The 2023 presidential election felt like a three-way battle between Tinubu, Atiku, and Obi—and all three look like they’ll be in the mix in the next elections. But the 2027 election looks like it could see a lot more viable contenders throwing their hats in the ring. We’re already seeing a lot of drama: coalitions, defections, divisions, reconciliations, and even a little betrayal. The Nigerian political space has more drama than your favourite soap opera right now.
Since we already know the main characters, we’ll be taking a look at some of the supporting cast who don’t make it to the headlines as much, because even though they may not be grabbing the headlines, they might still stir the pot and make 2027 a really interesting election. Who knows, one of them might even be our next president. If and when it happens, remember we called it first.
Rabiu Kwankwaso
Okay, so this won’t be so much of a surprise. Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso running for president again would be more like the predictable return of the major supporting character from a show’s last season.
When he ran as the Presidential Candidate of the New Nigeria People’s Party (NNPP) in 2023 he claimed almost 1.5 million votes. That was only approximately six per cent of the votes, but it was enough to come fourth behind the three heavyweights of Tinubu, Atiku and Obi.
Kwankwaso and the NNPP have a stranglehold on Kano State, one of the key states in northern Nigeria, from which almost a million of his votes came. It is no wonder that other parties, including the All Progressives Congress (APC) and Labour Party (LP), have been trying to get him on their side even before the 2023 ballots.
Kwankwaso’s endorsement of any of the other candidates could be all it takes to swing the presidential election. So, whether he runs himself or endorses one of the others, he will have a say in how 2027 plays out.
Goodluck Jonathan
Nigerians love a rerun when it comes to political leaders. Two out of the five presidents we have had since 1999 had ruled the country before. We are not even judging. It’s like binging your favourite show for the umpteenth time when you can’t find anything good to stream. No shame in rewatching FRIENDS again—we listen, we don’t judge.
Goodluck Ebele Jonathan is apparently ready to take another swing at the office he was famously voted out of in 2015. His party, the PDP, is also apparently open to having him as their candidate, as they scramble for a frontrunner following Atiku’s departure to the African Democratic Congress (ADC). He is an attractive candidate for a party plagued by internal conflict.
Also, there is a strong sentiment within the party that the presidential ticket should be zoned to the south after multiple cycles of Atiku; going by this sentiment, the Bayelsa native ticks that box.
He has been there, done that, and got the T-shirt when it comes to winning the presidency. In addition to this, quality of life under the ruling All Progressive Congress (APC) has worsened so much that some are beginning to look back fondly on his presidency.
It is always interesting when a character who was written off a show makes an unexpected comeback, so we are here for it.
Nyesom Wike
“Give me, give me, give me. Give me!”
Perhaps the most controversial entrant on our list, Nyesom Wike has never been shy about stating what he wants—and in 2023 for instance, he was clear in his ambition to be PDP’s presidential candidate.
When the primaries did not go his way, he seemed to turn on his party, doing his best to help the APC win in his home state and getting rewarded with a ministerial position for his troubles.
Since then, he has constantly been in the news for seemingly endless reconciliatory meetings with the party leadership, a prolonged spat with Senator Ireti Kingibe, the infamous feud with his successor as Rivers State governor, Siminalayi Fubara, and even being accused of allocating government-owned land in Abuja to members of his family.
Every story about political intrigue needs that one unpredictable character everyone loves to hate. The one who forms unexpected alliances at the last minute or backstabs their allies. The one who, like Wike, believes that “power is taken,” not given.
Despite openly fraternising with the enemy, Wike has maintained that he has no plans to leave the PDP and could be sizing up a second attempt at the party’s presidential ticket.
Last time round, the party delegates favoured Atiku. But with the former vice president having resigned from the party, it would be very interesting to see their response should Wike once again say: “Give me.”
Nasir El-Rufai
Nasir El-Rufai is part of the furniture when it comes to Nigerian democratic politics (post-1999). He enjoyed appointments under former President Obasanjo but fell out with the succeeding administration of Umaru Yar’Adua in 2008.
In 2011, he joined the Congress for Progressive Change (CPC), and when they joined forces with other parties to form the APC in 2013, he was a founding member. He served two terms as governor of Kaduna as an APC man and looked set to enjoy some sort of appointment under the Tinubu administration. But history repeated itself with him falling out again with a succeeding administration from his own party. This was particularly surprising considering how involved he was in Tinubu’s campaign, even acting as his mouthpiece at Chatham House.
El-Rufai left the APC to join the Social Democratic Party (SDP). It took him a much shorter time to fall out with his new friends. They did not take too kindly to his flirting with the ADC, so he has been expelled and banned from the party.
As a candidate, he is not very popular or well-liked outside of his home state of Kaduna. In the southern parts of the country, the El-Rufai name is associated with the suspicious disappearance of journalists, Islamisation conspiracies, and threats of ethnically-charged sexual hate crimes.
El-Rufai has always been one of the men behind the throne as opposed to sitting at the helm himself (at least at Federal level), and we doubt that is likely to change. Seeing him get the presidential ticket of any party would be truly shocking.
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Rotimi Amaechi
Many members of our list are playing their cards close to their chest, but not Rotimi Amaechi. The former Rivers State governor has gone on record to say that he will defeat the ruling APC if he is given the ADC presidential ticket for 2027.
As a member of the PDP, Amaechi served two terms as governor of Rivers State before dumping them for the APC. He went on to work as Director General of Muhammadu Buhari’s presidential campaign and he was rewarded for this role with a ministerial position, which he occupied for both of Buhari’s terms in office.
However, in 2023, he decided he wanted to be president himself but came second in the APC primaries behind Tinubu.
Amaechi now claims he will expose all of the APC’s shady activities, including vote rigging, if given the opportunity, and promises to use his in-depth knowledge of the party to take them down in 2027, should he be allowed to run as the ADC frontrunner.
Yemi Osinbajo
There might be something about the vice presidency position that just makes you desperate for the real thing.
Atiku Abubakar has run for president every single cycle since he was Obasanjo’s vice. Jonathan, once Yar’Adua’s vice, has been president and might run again in 2027. And Yemi Osinbajo himself ran in 2023 after serving as Buhari’s vice president.
He lost the APC primaries to current president Bola Ahmed Tinubu, but it appears his attempt at contesting may have angered some in the party. After all, he was handpicked by Tinubu to be vice president, so not immediately endorsing his benefactor appears to have been interpreted as a betrayal of sorts.
Since losing in 2023, Osinbajo has largely remained out of the spotlight, especially in presidential discourse, so perhaps his candidacy would be the first real surprise on our list so far.
Still, he is attractive to the southern Christian demographic, especially in the South-West of Nigeria, where his church, the Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG), holds considerable influence, and presidential candidacy rumours keep following him.
While it appears Osinbajo may have been frozen out by the APC leadership, he is still an official member of the party. But with several bodies within the APC already declaring their endorsements of Tinubu as sole candidate for 2027, any presidential aspirations he has may have to be pursued elsewhere.
Yusuf Datti Baba-Ahmed
Maybe there is something about being a vice presidential candidate, too. Peter Obi was Atiku’s running mate in 2019 before deciding he wanted to be the main man for 2023 and beyond.
So maybe it is just poetic justice that his own 2023 running mate, Yusuf Datti Baba-Ahmed, is considering being the main man too. Baba-Ahmed has claimed he would only contest if Obi did not, but while Obi has been flirting with the ADC, Baba-Ahmed has ruled out a defection to the ADC for himself. How their dynamic would play out should Obi officially move parties remains to be seen.
In the meantime, Baba-Ahmed has been calling for reconciliation of the warring factions within the Labour Party. He has been very vocal about his loyalty to the party, and should they lose Obi, it is very possible LP puts Baba-Ahmed forward as their candidate.
While he still seems hesitant to outrightly declare his ambition, there is still a lot of time before 2027, and so much more could happen. But do not be too surprised if you see Baba-Ahmed on the ballots come 2027.
This could be when the once loyal sidekick gets a dedicated storyline and shows us what he is really capable of. It could be very entertaining.
Seyi Makinde
Now this would be a real surprise. But even more than just a surprise, it would be proof of just how desperate the PDP leadership might be.
With Atikugone, PDP appears to be scrambling for potential candidates. They have been trying to get Obi back to the party, and are considering Jonathan again, though it was with him they lost their title as “ruling party” to the APC. Wike is an option, but he is also openly allied with APC members. It seems anyone will do for the PDP at this point.
Seyi Makinde will have completed his second term as Oyo State governor in 2027. That is usually when Nigerian politicians swap the governor’s office for a seat in the Senate, but it appears Makinde may be looking towards Aso Rock.
Conflicting reports surround the governor’s ambitions. Fellow PDP member and former governor of Ekiti State, Ayodele Fayose, claims Makinde assured him he would not run against Tinubu. However, Makinde himself has declared: “I do not have any doubt that I have the capacity to occupy the highest office in this land.”
Presidential campaign posters for Makinde are already appearing in northern states like Kano and Jigawa.
Is there anything more exciting than an underdog stepping up and surprising everyone, giving the big names a real challenge?
Kashim Shettima
Now this would be a real plot twist. If you have been following the internal rumblings of the APC recently, it might not be too surprising if Kashim Shettima does not return as Tinubu’s VP candidate for 2027. There seems to be trouble in paradise—if paradise were Aso Rock.
The language of those within the party already endorsing Tinubu for 2027 has drawn attention for the suspicious omission of the vice president’s name. An endorsement of Tinubu at an APC North-East zonal meeting in Gombe State that left out Shettima’s name was received violently in a region where Shettima retains fierce support.
These days, it feels like all the presidency does is address rumours about the vice president—like having to deny that he was barred from accessing the presidential villa, or that he had implied Tinubu had acted undemocratically by suspending Rivers State Governor, Simi Fubara.
Unfortunately for Shettima, Tinubu might be better off without him in 2027. Even within his North-East stronghold, some party stakeholders would rather he be dropped. The Muslim-Muslim ticket had always been a hard sell, and with how competitive 2027 is shaping up to be, some are calling for Tinubu to pick a Christian running mate to improve his chances.
Adding to Shettima’s woes is the fact that Tinubu has a lot of options when it comes to potential running mates. The National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu’s name has been floated as an option. Even the Deputy President of the Senate, Barau Jibrin, has declared: “Whatever the President asks me to do, I will do it—100 per cent” when asked about being Tinubu’s running mate for 2027.
There is also the mouth-watering prospect of wooing Kwankwaso and his election-swinging one million Kano votes to the APC with the offer of the vice presidency.
While Shettima’s dismissal by Tinubu seems likely at this stage, we would be surprised if the former Borno State governor decided to run for president himself.
Scorned ally turns enemy? Now that is drama—dare I say, absolute cinema.
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