Former Vice President and current presidential aspirant of the African Democratic Congress, ADC, Atiku Abubakar, has emerged as the flag bearer and presidential candidate of the party.

The collation of results was announced at the Congress Hall of Transcorp Hilton, Abuja, late Wednesday.

Tunde Ogbeha, the returning officer of the ADC presidential primary election, announced Abubakar as the winner of the poll.

Abubakar polled 1,846,370 votes, defeating former Managing Director of the defunct FSB International Bank, Mohammed Hayatudeen, and former Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi.

Amaechi polled 504,117 votes, while Hayatu-Deen got 177,120 votes.

Fred Agbedi, a member of the House of Representatives, has announced that former President Goodluck Jonathan will contest the 2027 presidential election.

Agbedi disclosed this while appearing on Channels Television’s Politics Today on Wednesday.

He said: “Former President Goodluck Jonathan is running for election with the Peoples Democratic Party, whichever way you want to put it.

“The PDAPC is promoting certain professors and INEC officials as observers for their election. However, the PDAPC is not recognised by law, and it seems that INEC is intentionally keeping them involved.

“You recall the decisions made by the Appeal Court and Supreme Court. The party has contacted INEC and sent reminders stating that the PDAPC is not recognised based on the court’s ruling, yet INEC is still holding onto them.”

This comes after an Abuja Federal High Court allowed Jonathan to run in the 2027 presidential election.

Last week, the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP-led faction of Kabiru Tanimu Turaki gave Jonathan a waiver to run for the presidency.

However, Johnmary Jideobi filed a lawsuit seeking a court order to stop Jonathan from emerging as a candidate for any political party in the 2027 presidential election.

On Tuesday, Justice Peter Lifu ruled that Jonathan is eligible to participate in the election as a candidate.

The National Democratic Congress, NDC, has announced that its primary elections will commence on May 28, 2026, as the party moves to align with the timetable released by the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC.

The NDC acknowledged that it had to drop its planned electronic voting system for the primaries due to time constraints.

The founder and National Leader of the NDC, Senator Henry Seriake Dickson, disclosed this in a statement he signed on Wednesday.

Dickson noted that the decision followed “many hours of discussions involving the National Chairman, presidential candidate Peter Obi, members of the National Working Committee, and the Selection Committee.”

The statement read: “After a briefing at the joint meeting of the Selection Committee and the Screening Committee, and considering the time limitations, we decided that everyone who purchased Expression of Interest Forms would participate in the primaries in their respective constituencies.”

The party clarified that only successful candidates would later proceed to the secretariat to complete documentation, pay nomination fees, and fulfill other necessary requirements.

The party also announced that teams made up of senior officials had been deployed to various states to supervise the primaries, with support from local leaders and stakeholders.

“Our party supports women and young people, and we encourage the teams to focus on candidates who have the capacity to win elections,” the statement said.

The NDC warned against violence during the primaries, stating that sanctions would be imposed on any candidate or supporter involved in intimidation or disruptive conduct.

“We urge peaceful primary elections and emphasize that we have zero tolerance for any form of violence.

“The party will act firmly against anyone who engages in violence, threats, intimidation, or disruptive behaviour,” it added.

The party directed candidates to proceed with the primaries on May 28 and 29 using only their Expression of Interest Forms because of the “tight timelines” facing the party.

Dickson explained that direct primaries would be conducted for State Assembly elections at the constituency level.

“The Selection Committee and the NEC will announce the final results at the party’s National Secretariat.

“We strongly encourage consensus arrangements where necessary,” the statement added.