ADC confident of winning against Tinubu in 2027 without a coalition

The African Democratic Congress believes it can defeat President Bola Tinubu in the 2027 presidential election without forming a coalition. This is according to the party’s National Publicity Secretary, Bolaji Abdullahi.

Abdullahi shared this view during an interview on Channels Television’s Politics Today on Friday. He expressed confidence that the ADC’s presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, could win the election without depending on other opposition parties.

“We are going to win. We don’t need a coalition to win this election. The African Democratic Congress does not need a coalition to win this election,” Abdullahi declared.

He mentioned that a broad coalition could help the party but is not essential for success. “If we are able to build the kind of coalition that we started to build, maybe to make our job easier, but we don’t need that coalition. We don’t necessarily need the coalition to win the election,” he explained.

When asked if Atiku could defeat Tinubu alone, Abdullahi replied, “I believe so, and that’s our thinking, and that’s what we are working on.” He said the ADC expects support from voters nationwide, “from Abia to Zamfara,” noting that many Nigerians might change their votes based on their experiences under Tinubu.

“The experience of Nigerians in the last three years has pushed people to the extent that they are saying that anybody but President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.”

These comments come as opposition parties try to regroup after an ambitious plan that began in 2025 fell short. Key figures like Atiku, Peter Obi, Nasir El-Rufai, Rotimi Amaechi, David Mark, and Rauf Aregbesola joined forces to support the ADC against Tinubu and the APC in 2027.

But the plan faced issues, leading to divisions. Obi and former Kano Governor Rabiu Kwankwaso left the ADC and joined the Nigeria Democratic Congress, where they are now running for president.

Abdullahi also mentioned that the ADC is open to discussions with other opposition parties, but he clarified that they are not focused on choosing a single presidential candidate. “We are still having conversations among ourselves, opposition political parties, and there are different areas,” he said.

He added that one area for possible cooperation is in monitoring elections and protecting votes. “The conversation is not about how do we produce a single presidential candidate. The conversations predominantly are about how… what areas of cooperation is possible,” he stated.

“For example, if we are able to develop a common protocol for election monitoring and for policing our votes, that is major.” He also challenged the government to debate its fuel subsidy proposal, stating that Nigerians deserve to hear both sides.

“We have said we will bring subsidy back,” Abdullahi stated. He expressed the ADC’s readiness to debate the issue with the All Progressives Congress (APC).

“I’m not an economist. You have your economists. We have our economists. We have our presidential candidate, and as a matter of fact, I’m the spokesperson of the ADC. Bring the spokesperson of the APC. Let us debate this subsidy issue because that is what Nigerians want to hear.