Former Kaduna State governor, Nasir El-Rufai, has predicted that the 2027 presidential election may go into a runoff, with no candidate emerging as outright winner in the first round.
Speaking on Sunday Politics on Channels Television, El-Rufai argued that President Bola Tinubu has “no pathway to victory” in 2027, insisting that at best, he would come third if the election is free and fair.
El-Rufai, who was a major campaigner for Tinubu in 2023, said Nigerians will cast their votes based on performance, not political party labels or defections.
“I was governor of Kaduna state; I was one of Bola Tinubu’s biggest campaigners, but I couldn’t deliver the state to him,” he said. “Bola Tinubu himself couldn’t win his state with his own governor in place. These things are not as theoretical as people want them to be.”
He added that while Tinubu may boast of control of state resources, security agencies, and the electoral commission, such factors do not guarantee reelection. To drive home his point, El-Rufai advised the President to “have coffee with former President Goodluck Jonathan” to understand how incumbency failed him in 2015.
The former governor also revealed that he would have resigned if he had been appointed a minister under Tinubu’s government. His own ministerial nomination was rejected by the Senate in 2023 over alleged security concerns, a development that widened his rift with the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).
El-Rufai has in recent months been critical of the APC, warning that Nigeria faces serious risks if the ruling party retains power beyond 2027.
