The Speaker of the Kwara State House of Assembly, Yakubu Danladi-Salihu, has emerged as the governorship candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) for the 2027 election in the state.
Danladi-Salihu, popularly known as SYD, was declared winner on Friday by the Chairman of the APC Governorship Primary Election Committee, Senator Musiliu Obanikoro, after the conclusion of the party’s primary election across the state.
According to Obanikoro, the Speaker polled over 94,000 votes to defeat other aspirants in a contest that followed days of intense political negotiations, controversy and shifting alliances within the Kwara APC.
His closest rival, Ambassador Abdulfatai Yahaya-Seriki, reportedly secured 41,700 votes, while former Kwara APC Chairman, Bashir Bolarinwa, came third with 22,118 votes.
Only three aspirants, Danladi-Salihu, Professor Wale Sulaiman and Captain Mahmud, were said to be present at the venue when the final results were announced.
Danladi-Salihu, who represents Ilesha/Gwanara Constituency in the Kwara State House of Assembly, hails from Baruten Local Government Area in Kwara North Senatorial District.
His emergence came after a dramatic turn of events within the ruling party. Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq had earlier endorsed businessman and politician Abdulfatai Yahaya-Seriki as his preferred successor, describing him as a “young, pro-people, astute, and broad-minded” politician.
However, tension deepened within the party as several aspirants and stakeholders reportedly resisted what they perceived as an attempt to impose a consensus candidate. At least 16 aspirants had purchased nomination forms for the governorship ticket, while some aspirants reportedly boycotted a strategic meeting convened by the governor.
The primary, initially scheduled for Thursday, was abruptly postponed to Friday following internal consultations and growing tension among party members.
Before the postponement, suspected thugs believed to be loyal to Yahaya-Seriki reportedly besieged the APC secretariat in Ilorin, chanting “No Seriki-Gambari, no vote,” causing panic among delegates and party officials before security operatives intervened.
Between Thursday night and Friday morning, political calculations reportedly shifted, with support swinging in favour of Danladi-Salihu. A government source said the governor had switched support from Yahaya-Seriki to the Speaker after wider consultations within the party.
The outcome is expected to shape the political contest ahead of the 2027 governorship election, especially as the opposition Peoples Democratic Party, led by former Senate President Bukola Saraki, intensifies efforts to reclaim the state.
Meanwhile, controversy also trailed the APC governorship primary in Adamawa State, where former Petroleum Technology Development Fund boss, Ahmed Tijjani Galadima, was declared winner amid allegations that no actual voting took place across the state.
Galadima was announced winner by the Chairman of the APC Governorship Primary Election Committee, Professor Innocent Bariko, who said the former PTDF chief polled 414,444 votes to defeat Abdulrazak Namdas, who reportedly scored 86,004 votes, and Abdulrahman Bashir Haske, who came third with 65,934 votes.
The declaration immediately sparked outrage among some party members, who alleged that there was no evidence of accreditation, voting or collation in any local government area of the state.
Haske rejected the announced figures, describing the results as lacking credibility.
“I don’t know where they got those numbers,” he said, adding that his camp would consult widely and “respond appropriately.”
Some party stakeholders described the process as a “manufactured primary” allegedly designed to impose a preferred candidate on the party.
Eyewitnesses at the Government House in Yola, where the results were declared, said agents of other aspirants were absent during the announcement, further raising questions about the transparency of the exercise.
The development has triggered fears of another round of legal and political battles within the Adamawa APC, which has historically struggled with disputed governorship primaries.
Galadima, however, welcomed his nomination and appealed for peace, urging other aspirants to join hands with him in the interest of the party.
In Nasarawa State, former Inspector-General of Police, Mohammed Adamu, also raised alarm over alleged attempts to manipulate the outcome of the APC governorship primary election.
The Director-General of the Mohammed Adamu Governorship Campaign Organisation, Musa Hussaini, made the allegation while addressing journalists in Lafia.
Hussaini said results from wards and local government areas where voting took place showed strong support for Adamu, but alleged that some officials of the Nasarawa State Government were interfering with result sheets in certain local government areas.
He described the alleged interference as undemocratic and capable of undermining the credibility of the primary.
“We, therefore, call on the APC Electoral Committee to remain firm, impartial and committed to justice by upholding the genuine results as obtained at the wards and local government collation centres,” he said.
“The committee must resist every form of pressure, intimidation or attempt to manipulate the democratic process.”
As of the time of filing this report, collation of results from the Nasarawa governorship primary was still ongoing at the state collation centre in Lafia.
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