Jigawa APC and 2027: Can Namadi and Badaru Prevent an Internal Rift from Becoming an Electoral Crisis?
By Bala Salihu Dawakin Kudu
Democracy Newsline Northern Bureau Chief
August 16, 2026
As the 2027 governorship election approaches, the greatest challenge facing the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Jigawa State may not be the opposition, but the party’s ability to manage its own internal differences.
At the centre of growing political speculation are Governor Umar Namadi and his predecessor, former Governor and former Minister of Defence, Mohammed Badaru Abubakar. There is no established evidence that the APC has formally split into Namadi and Badaru factions, nor is there sufficient evidence to conclude that Badaru himself is working against Namadi’s re-election. Such claims must therefore remain allegations or political interpretations unless supported by verifiable evidence.
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Namadi has already secured the APC governorship ticket. The immediate challenge is therefore no longer obtaining the party’s nomination, but ensuring that the political structure behind that nomination remains united.
Namadi rose politically within the administration of Badaru, but since becoming governor in 2023 he has understandably developed his own political network and strengthened his influence over the APC structure.
The 2026 party processes demonstrated the extent of that influence. Yet control of party structures does not automatically guarantee electoral unity.
The legislative primaries provided a particularly important warning. Several sitting APC federal lawmakers failed to secure tickets to return under the party’s platform. Such outcomes can have consequences beyond individual politicians because elected officials often command extensive grassroots networks.
The danger is not necessarily immediate defection. It can also take the quieter form of reduced mobilisation, resentment or political disengagement.
Why Badaru still matters
Badaru remains a major figure in Jigawa politics after eight years as governor. Some politicians associated with his political network have resigned from the APC or moved towards opposition platforms, while his meetings with opposition figures have generated speculation about his political intentions.
Badaru has explained that such engagements do not necessarily mean he intends to leave the APC. That position deserves to be respected unless contrary evidence emerges.
Nevertheless, the continued association of his name with political realignments demonstrates that his influence remains relevant.
The emergence of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) as a destination for some dissatisfied politicians further complicates the situation. Every politician who leaves the ruling party potentially takes relationships, supporters and organisational experience with him.
The history of Nigerian politics shows that ruling parties can weaken themselves through internal disputes.
Elections are not won solely through party headquarters or government offices. They are won at wards, polling units and communities, through party agents, local leaders, women and youth networks, campaign coordinators and influential individuals.
That is why the real question is not whether Namadi and Badaru personally disagree. The more important question is whether their respective political networks can continue to work together.
Reconciliation must go beyond symbolism
Governor Namadi’s decision to establish a reconciliation committee after the APC primaries was therefore significant. The committee’s engagement with aspirants and stakeholders provides an opportunity to identify grievances and rebuild confidence.
If genuine complaints are listened to and reasonably addressed, the process could strengthen the APC. If aggrieved politicians conclude that the exercise is merely cosmetic, the underlying tension may remain.
Namadi has an important leadership opportunity. He can demonstrate that political disagreement is not necessarily disloyalty and that unsuccessful aspirants can remain valuable stakeholders in the party.
Badaru also has a responsibility. If the APC remains his political home, his influence can be used to encourage his supporters to remain within the party rather than allow disappointment to become permanent opposition.
It should not become “Namadi versus Badaru”
The greatest strategic mistake would be to reduce Jigawa’s 2027 politics to a personal battle between two politicians.
The election will ultimately be about much more: the performance of the APC government, the credibility of candidates, the strength of opposition parties, local alliances, economic concerns and the effectiveness of grassroots mobilisation.
The better question is therefore not “Who will win between Namadi and Badaru?”
It is:
“Can the APC in Jigawa unite its competing political interests strongly enough to win in 2027?”
That is the real test.
Three possible outcomes
If the present tensions are poorly managed, three outcomes are possible.
First, APC could retain its formidable organisational structure but enter the election politically divided.
Second, opposition parties could recruit dissatisfied APC politicians and benefit from their networks.
Third—and most dangerously—elite disagreements could spread to wards and local governments, creating competing grassroots camps.
But the situation is not beyond repair. APC still controls the state government, has an incumbent candidate, possesses an established political structure and faces an opposition that is itself experiencing competition and realignment.
The APC has the structure.
What remains uncertain is whether these three political realities can be brought together.
The 2027 election may therefore become less a test of whether Namadi can secure the APC ticket and more a test of whether the party can prevent internal competition from becoming internal warfare.
The solution is neither to silence dissent nor to allow every disagreement to become factional politics. It is to create room for genuine grievances, political negotiation and inclusion.
For Namadi, leadership will mean bringing old and new political interests into one functioning coalition. For Badaru, statesmanship will mean using his influence to preserve party unity while ensuring that his supporters are not politically discarded.
The overriding lesson is straightforward: APC may have little to fear from its internal differences if it manages them wisely; it has much to fear if those differences are allowed to harden into permanent rival camps.
In 2027, Jigawa APC will not merely be defending a governorship ticket. It will be defending the political coalition that makes that ticket electable.
Bala Salihu Dawakin Kudu
Democracy Newsline Northern Bureau Chief
Email: balasalihudawakinkudu@gmail.com
Tel: 08060017934
(DEMOCRACY NEWSLINE NEWSPAPER 16TH AUGUST, 2026)
