Next Year: Presidential Aspirants Atiku, Obi, Olawepo-Hashim and Several Others Explain Why They're After Tinubu's Position

Nigeria's 2027 presidential election is taking shape as one of the most consequential and unpredictable contests since the country's return to civilian rule in 1999, with economic hardship, insecurity, and public frustration creating a fluid political environment.

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Two women, Anita Zugwai-Chukw and Esther Okereke, are among those raising the stakes in the election, which has drawn a crowded field of opposition presidential candidates seeking to unseat President Bola Tinubu next year.

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The PDP, once Africa's largest political party, is now split between two rival blocs, one led by former Minister Kabiru Turaki backing ex-President Goodluck Jonathan, and another aligned with FCT Minister Nyesom Wike, backing Senator Sandy Onor, with both claiming to be the authentic PDP.

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Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar is running on the platform of the African Democratic Congress, ADC, which also has a factional candidate in Mr. Dumebi Kachikwu, while other candidates include former Anambra State Governor Peter Obi, former Cross River State Governor Donald Duke, and former Presidential Candidate Gbenga Olawepo-Hashim.

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Atiku Abubakar, a veteran contender with over three decades of experience in Nigeria's presidential politics, has remained a permanent feature of the country's political landscape, surviving party splits, electoral defeats, and changing eras.

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Born in Jada, Adamawa State, in 1946, Atiku rose from the Nigeria Customs Service to establish a substantial business empire before serving as vice president under Olusegun Obasanjo from 1999 to 2007, and in 2026, he secured the ADC presidential ticket.

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Atiku's push for the presidency is anchored on restructuring Nigeria's federal architecture, devolving more fiscal and political power to the states, liberalizing the economy, privatizing key sectors, and attracting foreign direct investment, with a focus on stronger intelligence capacity and addressing the root economic causes of insurgency.

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Donald Duke, the PRP candidate, is building his campaign on the argument that Nigeria's problem is not a lack of resources but a failure of governance imagination, advocating for creative economic development, investment-led growth, tourism, and merit-based public administration.

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Sandy Onor, the PDP candidate, is framing his campaign around organizational discipline, consensus governance, and competence, with a challenge to introduce himself to millions of Nigerians who barely know his name, while competing against household names like Jonathan and Atiku.

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Gbenga Olawepo-Hashim, the Accord Party candidate, is centered on constitutional reform, economic diversification, institutional strengthening, and national unity, insisting that democratic institutions, not powerful individuals, must drive national development.

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Peter Obi, the NDC candidate, has outlined a detailed and data-driven agenda, including an intelligence-driven, technology-enhanced strategy to address insecurity, doubling health insurance coverage, and increasing power generation and distribution, with a fundamental argument that Nigeria must shift from consumption to production.

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Sonny Adenuga, the BOOT Party candidate, is a project management professional with over two decades of international experience, promising to deploy an "Intelligence Champions Security Framework" to address insecurity within 24 months of taking office, with a focus on merit-based leadership and zero tolerance for corruption and political violence.

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Adewole Adebayo, the SDP candidate, is a lawyer and businessman with an international perspective, investing heavily in youth development through KAFTAN TV's training program, with a campaign centered on constitutional governance, rule of law, economic diversification, and strengthening democratic institutions.

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Chibuzo Okereke, the Labour Party candidate, holds a PhD in Legislative Governance Studies and serves as President of the ERGAF-AFRICA Legislative Governance Innovation and Policy Hub, with a candidacy representing the party's bid to reposition itself around institutional reform and policy expertise.

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Anita Zugwai-Chukw, the NRM candidate, is committed to providing proactive leadership to address Nigeria's economic and security challenges, with a vision to build a nation driven by unity, innovation, economic growth, and inclusive development.

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Ambassador Aliyu Bin Abbas, the ADP candidate, is a prominent Nigerian political strategist, humanitarian, and diplomat from Borno State, focusing on national unity, increased youth and women's participation in governance, and economic empowerment, with a promise to harness artificial intelligence to fix the country.