May 22, (THEWILL) — The All Progressives Congress has announced the adoption of a direct primary system for the conduct of its 2026 presidential primaries, unveiling fresh guidelines and constituting committees to oversee the exercise ahead of the 2027 general election.
The party also named former Senate President, Pius Anyim, as Chairman of the seven-member Presidential Primary Election Committee charged with supervising the exercise nationwide.
In the guidelines released by the party’s National Secretariat and signed by the National Secretary, Senator Surajudeen Ajibola Basiru, the APC stated that all registered party members across the country would be eligible to vote for the presidential aspirant of their choice in each of the nation’s 8,809 wards.
According to the document, the presidential primary will be conducted through direct voting in all wards, while results from the 774 local government areas would be collated by designated Local Government Collation Officers appointed by the National Working Committee.
The APC further stated that State Coordinators and Collation Officers would supervise the exercise across the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory before presenting collated results to the Presidential Primary Election Committee in Abuja on May 24, 2026.
The party noted that the exercise would also be guided by provisions contained in the “Procedure for the Conduct of Direct and Consensus Mode of Primaries” earlier forwarded to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) through a letter dated May 15, 2026.
Members of the Presidential Primary Election Committee include former Senate President, Ken Nnamani, Senator Victor Ndoma-Egba, SAN, former Speaker of the House of Representatives, Yakubu Dogara, former Ekiti Deputy Governor, Grace Titi Laoye-Ponle, and former Governor, Idris Wada, while Sanusi Musa will serve as secretary.
The APC also constituted a three-member Presidential Primary Election Appeal Committee headed by former Katsina State Governor and ex-APC National Chairman, Aminu Masari. Samuel Piwuna will serve as secretary, while former Speaker of the House of Representatives, Patricia Etteh, was appointed member.
As part of arrangements for the primaries, the party appointed several governors, ministers and senior party leaders as State Coordinators and Collation Officers across the federation.
Among those appointed are Imo State Governor, Hope Uzodimma, Kwara State Governor, AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq, Borno State Governor, Babagana Zulum, Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, Rivers State Governor, Siminalayi Fubara and Yobe State Governor, Mai Mala Buni.
The appointments, according to the APC, are aimed at ensuring a transparent, credible and well-coordinated presidential primary process as the ruling party intensifies preparations for the 2027 elections.
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