Former Kogi West senator, Dino Melaye, has declared that the African Democratic Congress is poised to unseat President Bola Ahmed Tinubu in the 2027 presidential election, citing emerging opposition alliances and voting trends from the last poll.
Melaye, in a social media post, described recent defections into the ADC as a sign that Nigeria’s “redemption” is near, particularly pointing to the move by Rabiu Kwankwaso from the New Nigeria Peoples Party.
He argued that Kwankwaso’s strong voter base—especially in Kano—combined with a potential coalition involving Atiku Abubakar and Peter Obi, could tilt the balance against the ruling All Progressives Congress.
Backing his claim with figures from the 2023 election, Melaye noted that Kwankwaso secured 997,279 votes in Kano State alone—more than the total votes polled by Tinubu across 11 states, including Bayelsa, Delta, Taraba, Gombe, Borno, Yobe, Abia, Anambra, Enugu, Ebonyi, and Imo.
He further stressed that opposition candidates—Atiku, Obi, and Kwankwaso—collectively garnered 14.5 million votes, representing about 64 per cent, compared to Tinubu’s 8.7 million votes, or 36 per cent.
“Do you know that the opposition votes, that is, Atiku, Obi and Kwankwaso, polled 14,582,740, representing about 64%, while Tinubu got 8,794,726, representing about 36%?
“Do you know that in the 2023 elections, Tinubu won in 12 states while the opposition won in 25 states, including the FCT?” he said.
Despite the APC currently controlling 31 states through its governors, Melaye argued that such dominance does not necessarily translate to electoral victory, recalling that the party controlled 22 states before the 2023 election but won only 12.
He maintained that with more time to organise ahead of 2027, opposition forces have a stronger chance of consolidating their gains.
“Well, the moving of Kwankwaso to join Atiku, Peter Obi, Dino Melaye, (Rotimi) Ameachi, Nasir El-Rufai, Malami, Rauf (Aregbesola), Kashim Imam and SIA (Senator Ibikunle Amosun) in ADC is not just a mere political alignment but a political earthquake.
“These are empirical evidence, numbers not just rhetorics and social media wishy wishy,” he stated.
“Redemption is here,” he concluded.
