About 14 million registered members of the All Progressives (APC) are expected to participate in the primary election today to nominate the party’s presidential candidate for the 2027 general elections.
APC’s national chairman, Prof. Nentawe Yilwatda at a recent nationwide media chat with national television stations disclosed that the party’s membership base had grown close to 14 million.
“We have over 13 million, we are heading to 14 million registered members of the party, out of the number, people between the age of 18 and 35 form roughly about 50% of our members, 49. 6% which means that we are the most youthful party in Nigeria,” Yilwatda said.
These registered members of the APC are to vote for the party’s presidential candidate in the 8,809 wards across the country.
The ruling party had fixed May 23 for its presidential primary with President Bola Tinubu and Osifo Stanley as the only aspirants.
APC in the guidelines for the conduct of the primary approved direct mode of election.
According to the guidelines signed by the national secretary, Senator Ajibola Basiru, all registered members of the party shall be eligible to vote for the presidential aspirant of their choice in each of the 8,809 wards in the country.
The guideline states: “The direct primary will be held in each of the 8,809 wards. Results for each ward comprised in each of the 774 local governments will be collated by the local government collation officer to be appointed by the state coordinator and collation officer appointed by the National Working Committee.
“The organisation of conduct of the direct primary in each of the 36 state and the FCT shall be the responsibility by the state coordinator and collation officer who shall also collate the results of the all the local governments in the state and present same to the Presidential Primary Election Committee in Abuja on May 24.
“The Provisions of the ‘Procedure for the Conduct of Direct and Consensus Mode of Primaries’ earlier issued and forwarded to the Independent National Electoral Committee under the cover of a letter dated 15 May, 2026 with reference No: APC/NHDQ/INEC/PRYS-DOCS/01-05/26 shall also apply mutatis mutandis.”
On the other hand, the party named former Senate Presidents Pius Anyim and Ken Nnamani as chairman and deputy chairman of the Presidential Primary Election Committee with Senator Victor Ndoma-Egba, Grace Titi Laoye-Ponle; former House of Representatives Speaker Yakubu Dogara, former Kogi state Governor Idris Wada as members while Sanusi Musa is the secretary.
The party further appointed former Katsina state governor, Hon. Aminu Masari as chairman of the Presidential Primary Election Appeal Committee with former House of Representatives Speaker Patricia Etteh as member while Samuel Piwuna is secretary of the panel.
It made the 31 APC governors coordinators and collation officers of their various states while states without the party’s sitting governors like Oyo, Osun, Bauchi, Abia Anambra and FCT are to be coordinated by Senator Teslim Folarin, former Governor Adegboyega Oyetola, Health Minister Muhammad Ali Pate, Deputy Speaker Benjamin Kalu, Senator Uche Ekwunife and Senator Philip Aduda, respectively.
