Osun Victory Signals Tinubu’s 2027 Defeat, APM Declares
The Allied Peoples Movement has declared that the outcome of Saturday’s Osun State governorship election is a warning that President Bola Tinubu could lose the 2027 presidential election to the party’s candidate, Governor Seyi Makinde of Oyo State.
The party said the victory recorded by the opposition in Osun, one of the states where Tinubu has strong political roots, demonstrated that the electorate could defeat an incumbent political establishment when dissatisfied with its performance.
On Saturday, the Independent National Electoral Commission declared Governor Ademola Adeleke of the Accord Party winner of the Osun governorship election, having polled 511,067 votes to defeat his closest challenger, Bola Oyebamiji of the All Progressives Congress, who secured 444,815 votes. The winning margin stood at 66,252 votes, with Adeleke carrying 19 of the state’s 30 local government areas.
In a statement issued on Sunday by its National Publicity Secretary, Yusuf Abubakar, the APM said the Osun result had exposed what it described as declining support for the APC and growing demand for a change of leadership at the federal level.
“The triumph of the people over the All Progressives Congress in Saturday’s governorship election in President Tinubu’s home state, Osun, not only foretastes the defeat that awaits President Tinubu in 2027 but also firmly establishes Makinde’s people-driven position that every political establishment seems unbeatable until the people decide otherwise,” the party said.
The APM argued that the reaction of voters to APC leaders during the election was evidence of growing public dissatisfaction with the ruling party. It particularly pointed to the alleged booing of Tinubu’s political associates, including APC governors, as they left Osun State, saying the development showed that Nigerians were increasingly prepared to reject the ruling party at the polls.
“Judging from the disposition of Nigerians as witnessed in the booing of APC leaders, President Tinubu and his party will struggle to command any genuine audience during the upcoming campaigns,” Abubakar said.
The party maintained that the Tinubu-led government would not be rewarded with another term if Nigerians continued to experience what it described as economic hardship, insecurity and poor governance. The party further argued that Nigerians were increasingly identifying Makinde with what it described as competent, transparent and people-oriented leadership.
“Nigerians are gravitating toward Seyi Makinde because they see in him the right presidential candidate with the desired track record of performance, practical blueprint, competence and youthful commitment to reset Nigeria to a nation of our collective dream,” the statement further read.
Makinde, who has governed Oyo State since 2019, will finish his second term in office in 2027 and fly the APM’s presidential ticket. The Oyo State governor formally declared his presidential bid under the APM in May 2026 and has since selected former Department of State Services Director-General Lawal Daura as his running mate for the 2027 general election.
The APM also claimed that Makinde had demonstrated the capacity to manage a larger political and economic constituency, pointing to what it described as the growth of Oyo State’s economy under his administration. The party recalled that President Julius Maada Bio of Sierra Leone had visited Oyo State to exchange ideas with the governor on leadership and development, describing the visit as evidence of the growing recognition of Makinde’s performance beyond the state.
The statement, however, offered no specific evidence to support its claim that the Tinubu administration was the worst in Nigeria’s history but listed inflation, unemployment, insecurity, infrastructural decay and economic hardship among the issues it said were driving public dissatisfaction.
“Of course, Nigerians can no longer continue to stomach the arrogance in failure, totalitarian proclivities, worsening insecurity and economic hardship that the Tinubu administration now represents,” the party said.
The APM’s position comes as political parties and presidential aspirants begin positioning themselves ahead of the 2027 general elections, with the performance of the Tinubu administration expected to dominate the emerging political contest. Recent opinion polls have indicated declining public approval for the President. A nationwide survey conducted by Eagle Badger Data Analytics showed that only 30.2 per cent of Nigerians approve of Tinubu’s performance, while 47.5 per cent disapprove.
Against this backdrop, the APM said the APC should not contemplate manipulating the 2027 presidential election, warning that any attempt to undermine the will of voters would be resisted.
“Our party therefore cautions the APC to read the handwriting on the wall and perish any thoughts of rigging the 2027 presidential election, as any attempt to subvert the will of the people will be firmly resisted by Nigerians on the platform of the APM,” Abubakar said.
The party congratulated Nigerians over what it described as the triumph of their will in Osun and said the development had strengthened its resolve to challenge the APC in the 2027 presidential election.
The APM, which had its candidate, Adebayo Adewale, withdraw from the Osun governorship race days before the election to endorse Adeleke, said it would lead what it described as a collective effort to “redeem our nation from the stranglehold of the APC” in January 2027.