Nigerians will head to the polls on Saturday, with fierce contests expected for governorships and assembly seats in Lagos, Sokoto, Kaduna, Kano, Bauchi and Rivers states. Eighteen political parties have nominated candidates for the governorship elections, which will be held in 28 of the country’s 36 states.
In Sokoto, the race is a straight fight between All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate Ahmad Aliyu and Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) candidate Saidu Umar. Aliyu, a former deputy to Governor Aminu Tambuwal, resigned to win the APC ticket and narrowly lost to his former boss in 2019 by 342 votes after two rounds. The APC will rely on influential figures such as Senator Aliyu Wamakko, a two‑term former governor who became party leader after Tambuwal’s 2018 defection, and Alhaji Umaru Kwabo (Jarman Sokoto). Additional APC supporters include Senate Majority Leader Ibrahim Gobir, deputy governorship candidate Idris Gobir, state party chairman Alhaji Isa Sadiq Acida, senatorial candidate Ibrahim Isah and retired Col. Garba Moyi. The PDP will draw on former governor Attahiru Bafarawa and his son Sagir, state chairman Aliyu Bello Goronyo, Shuaibu Gobir, Yusuf Suleiman, former transport minister Abdullahi Salame and others.
Lagos’ governorship contest is shaping up as a three‑horse race among incumbent APC Governor Babajide Sanwo‑Olu, Labour Party (LP) candidate Gbadebo Rhodes‑Vivour and PDP contender Abdul‑Azeez Adediran. Sanwo‑Olu seeks a second term but faces youth disenchantment and a desire to curb the influence of his political benefactor, President‑elect Bola Tinubu. Rhodes‑Vivour hopes to replicate the success of LP presidential candidate Peter Obi by mobilising young voters, while Sanwo‑Olu is praised for infrastructure achievements yet unsettled by strong social‑media support for Rhodes‑Vivour. Rhodes‑Vivour has secured endorsements from the Committee of Indigenous Lagosians and, paradoxically, from PDP heavyweight Chief Bode George, who has refused to back his party’s own candidate.
In Kano, APC candidate Dr. Nasiru Gawuna will face New Nigeria People’s Party (NNPP) nominee Abba Yusuf for the governorship. The NNPP’s dominance in the February 25 presidential and national‑assembly elections—winning 997,279 votes to the APC’s 517,341—suggests it may have the upper hand. The party’s rise is linked to defections from the APC after complaints of marginalisation.
Kaduna’s 4.3 million registered voters will choose between APC’s Uba Sani and PDP’s Isah Ashiru, with additional contenders Alhaji Sani Sha’aban (Action Democratic Party), former finance commissioner and NNPP candidate Senator Suleiman Hunkuyi, and LP candidate Jonathan Asake. Sani hopes to benefit from Governor Sani El‑Rufai’s infrastructure projects, while Ashiru, a grassroots politician who nearly upset El‑Rufai in 2019, enjoys support from party stalwarts such as former Vice President Namadi Sambo and ex‑governors Ahmed Makarfi and Ramalan Yero. Sha’aban, related by marriage to President Buhari, may also be competitive, whereas Hunkuyi is preparing legal challenges that could affect the PDP’s participation. Asake, popular in southern Kaduna, faces doubts about his statewide appeal despite the LP’s surprising performance in the February elections.
Rivers State will see a four‑way contest: PDP’s Siminialayi Fubara, Social Democratic Party (SDP) Senator Magnus Abe, APC’s Tonye Cole and Labour Party’s Beatrice Itubo. Historically, power has rotated between riverine and upland zones, but Governor Nyesom Wike’s 2015 emergence—both he and predecessor Rotimi Amaechi are upland Ikwerre—disrupted that pattern. Fubara (Opobo, riverine) and Cole (Kalabari, riverine) benefit from the rotation sentiment, while Abe gains from his senatorial district. Fubara also enjoys Wike’s backing. Itubo, a former NLC chairperson, may attract workers but is disadvantaged by her upland origin (Abua/Odual). PDP campaign director Ogbonma Nwuke expressed confidence in Fubara’s candidacy.
In Bauchi, the field narrowed from fifteen to nine candidates, with the main contest expected among incumbent PDP Governor Bala Mohammed, APC’s Air Marshal Sadique Abubakar (retired) and NNPP Senator Haliru Jika. Namun, Jika is not viewed as a major threat.
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