2027: Niger APC targets 2m Votes For Tinubu, Gov. Bago 

……As the party Inaugurates 525-Member Campaign Council

By Daniel Ebi , Minna

The All Progressives Congress (APC) in Niger State has set a target of more than two million votes for President Bola Tinubu in the 2027 general election, following the inauguration of a 525-member State Presidential/Gubernatorial Campaign Council by Governor Mohammed Umaru Bago.

The governor, who inaugurated the council on Monday, charged party leaders and members to intensify grassroots mobilization and adopt a coordinated campaign strategy capable of translating the party’s political structures into votes across the state.

Bago said the council’s composition, which includes commissioners, special advisers, local government chairmen, councillors, lawmakers, ministers, directors-general and coordinators, was designed to strengthen the party’s reach from the ward and unit levels to the state.

He expressed confidence that effective coordination among party stakeholders would enable the APC to surpass its previous electoral performance.

“If everybody would bring their own votes, it would give us more than one million votes. But our target is beyond that. The ambition this time around is to bring out over two million votes, and by the grace of God we will do that,” he said.

The governor emphasized the need for mobilization from the grassroots to the top and from the leadership down to the party’s base, insisting that all levels of the organization must work towards a common electoral objective.

He also urged the party to embrace members returning from other political platforms, describing inclusiveness and unity as essential to strengthening the APC ahead of the elections.

Bago recalled the coalition of political parties that gave birth to the APC and enabled it to defeat the then-ruling party, urging members to preserve the spirit of cooperation that underpinned the party’s emergence.

On the conduct of the campaign, the governor called for responsible media coverage and cautioned political actors against inflammatory rhetoric capable of overheating the polity or creating security challenges.

He said the campaign would focus on communicating the Federal Government’s economic policies, revenue improvements and job-creation efforts, alongside the achievements of his administration in infrastructure and security.

According to him, improved road networks and better movement of goods in some parts of Niger State were among the gains the government would present to voters.

Bago further disclosed that the North Central Presidential Campaign Office in Minna would be commissioned the following week, with the President, Vice President, Senate President, Speaker of the House of Representatives and APC National Chairman among the dignitaries who might attend.

The Minister of Information, Idris Malagi, commended the leadership selected for the campaign council, expressing optimism that the party would mobilize support around the Tinubu administration’s economic policies and achievements over the past three and a half years.

Malagi urged members of the council to place the collective interest of Niger State and the party above individual ambitions, stressing the importance of unity and effective coordination throughout the campaign.

The APC North Central Chairman, while congratulating the council’s leadership, said the party would not take its opponents for granted in the 2027 elections.

He said the APC’s electoral objective extended beyond securing Tinubu’s re-election to retaining Bago as governor and winning the party’s senatorial, House of Representatives and state House of Assembly seats.

In his acceptance remarks, the Director-General of the campaign council, Ahmed Ibeto, pledged that members would approach the assignment with commitment, discipline and strategic coordination.

Ibeto said the council would establish effective operational structures across its directorates, local government areas, wards and polling units to ensure comprehensive mobilization and engagement with voters.

He added that the council would combine the experience of established party leaders with fresh ideas, while ensuring that campaign activities complied with relevant electoral guidelines.

The inauguration marks an early organisational step by the Niger APC towards the 2027 general elections, with the party leadership banking on its grassroots structures and internal cohesion to achieve its ambitious vote target.