Nigeria’s main opposition party the African Democratic Congress (ADC) picked Atiku Abubakar as its flagbearer in January’s presidential elections, setting up a rematch of his 2023 contest with incumbent leader Bola Tinubu.
“I am truly humbled and excited by this singular honour,” he said in a statement posted on X. “With the primaries behind us, the real hard work is about to begin.”
Abubakar, 79, who heads the ADC and served as vice president from 1999 to 2007 in Olusegun Obasanjo’s administration, has staged six unsuccessful runs for the presidency.
He has advocated for the privatization of state assets and greater decentralization of power. He has also criticized Tinubu for failing to tackle mounting insecurity and a rise in living costs that ensued after the president introduced a range of reforms, including liberalizing the exchange rate and scrapping fuel subsidies.
Tinubu, who narrowly won the 2023 vote against a divided opposition, is seeking a second term. He was endorsed as the ruling All Progressives Congress’s candidate after seeing off sole opponent Stanley Osifo in the party’s primaries.
Abubakar faces the challenge of drawing support beyond his traditional northern support base. His backing in southern Nigeria has waned since the last election and he could struggle to attract voters who supported Peter Obi, the Labor Party’s candidate in the 2023 vote.
While Obi retains support among urban and younger voters, the Labour Party has been riven by internal divisions and Obi has joined the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), a relatively unknown party.
Nigeria’s Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) earlier accelerated the election timetable, scheduling the vote for the president and members of the National Assembly to Jan. 16, with governorship and state assembly polls to follow weeks later.
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