By Abdul Lauya
With the 2027 general elections on the horizon, political maneuverings are heating up as stakeholders in the African Democratic Congress (ADC) coalition make calculated moves to court former Kano State governor, Mallam Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso, in a bid to capture the mega electoral bloc of Kano State.
Multiple credible reports, including a confirmation from Sunday PUNCH, reveal that coalition leaders have initiated back-channel engagements aimed at persuading Kwankwaso, an influential northern political heavyweight and presidential candidate in the 2023 elections under the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP), to align with their platform ahead of 2027.
A key player in the ADC-led coalition and former Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Babachir Lawal, acknowledged ongoing efforts to bring Kwankwaso into the fold. Speaking to journalists, Lawal noted, “It will be a big advantage if he joins us… He is welcome because he comes with a large number of supporters.”
The move is strategically significant. Kwankwaso remains one of the most formidable political figures in Northern Nigeria, particularly in Kano, a state with a high voter turnout and one of the largest voting populations in the country.
In the 2023 presidential election, Kwankwaso polled nearly one million votes from Kano alone, underscoring his grassroots grip.
Analysts interpret the ADC coalition’s outreach as an attempt to counterbalance the growing influence of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) and to challenge the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) in what is shaping up to be a volatile pre-election alignment season.
However, the APC is not sitting idle. The party’s Vice Chairman (South-East), Ijeoma Arodiogbu, dismissed the ADC coalition’s ambition as opportunistic, urging Kwankwaso to remain aligned with the APC instead.
“Kwankwaso should choose a party that can win elections. The ADC coalition is more of an alliance of electoral orphans,” Arodiogbu reportedly said.
Despite the tug-of-war, Kwankwaso has remained tight-lipped. His silence, however, has only deepened speculation about his next political move.
For now, the ADC coalition appears determined to lure him in, betting on his influence to tilt the 2027 presidential contest in their favor.
Whether those efforts will bear fruit remains to be seen, but what is clear is that Kano’s electoral significance has once again taken center stage in Nigeria’s political chessboard.
