Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo, has described the All Progressives Congress (APC)’s performance in the recent legislative bye-elections as significant ahead of the 2027 general elections.
The APC secured four of the five seats contested across Kano, Bauchi, Gombe and Delta states in the September 19 bye-elections. The party won the Dawakin Kudu State Constituency in Kano, Disina State Constituency in Bauchi, Gombe/Kwami/Funakaye Federal Constituency in Gombe, and Udu State Constituency in Delta.
The party, however, lost the Sakwa State Constituency election in Bauchi to the Allied Peoples Movement (APM).
In Kano, APC candidate Hussaini Yusuf Datti secured 22,890 votes to win the Dawakin Kudu State Constituency seat. In Bauchi, Yakubu Ali of the APC polled 5,846 votes in Disina, ahead of the APM candidate, who recorded 5,225 votes.
The APC also won the Gombe/Kwami/Funakaye Federal Constituency, where its candidate, Kallamu Usman MaiJama’a, received 41,121 votes. In Delta, APC candidate Okolosi Ator won the Udu State Constituency seat with 8,724 votes, while the APM secured the Sakwa seat with 8,515 votes.
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has said the bye-elections provided operational lessons that could be useful in preparations for the 2027 general elections.
Reacting to the results in a social media post on Sunday, Keyamo highlighted the geographical spread of the APC’s victories, pointing to the party’s wins in the North-West, North-East and South-South geopolitical zones.
He also referenced the constitutional requirement for a presidential candidate to obtain at least 25 per cent of the votes cast in at least two-thirds of all states in the federation and the Federal Capital Territory, a provision that forms part of the constitutional framework for winning the presidency.
Nigeria’s 2027 presidential and National Assembly elections are scheduled for February 20, 2027, according to INEC’s published timetable.
Keyamo said he would provide a more detailed analysis of what he described as the significance of the bye-election results closer to the 2027 election.
“Let me keep our gunpowder dry for now. A fuller analysis of this significant factor in Presidential elections will follow on January 19th or 20th, 2027,” Keyamo said.
“No be cho cho cho!!,” he added.
