The All Progressives Congress has officially retained Vice President Kashim Shettima as the running mate to President Bola Tinubu for the 2027 presidential election, ending months of speculation over the composition of the party’s presidential ticket.
The ruling party also expressed confidence that the Tinubu-Shettima ticket would secure victory at the polls after formally submitting their nomination forms for onward transmission to the Independent National Electoral Commission ahead of Saturday’s deadline.
The nomination documents were presented to the APC National Chairman, Prof. Nentawe Yilwatda, in Abuja on Friday by the President’s Special Adviser on Political Matters, Ibrahim Masari.
The event was attended by members of the Progressive Governors’ Forum, the National Assembly, the Federal Executive Council, the APC National Working Committee, state chairmen of the party and several governorship candidates.
The submission was made ahead of INEC’s 6 p.m. Saturday deadline for political parties to upload the nomination forms of their presidential and National Assembly candidates through its online portal in accordance with the Electoral Act, 2026.
Speaking during the ceremony, APC National Organising Secretary, Sulaiman Argungu, described the event as the formal presentation of the completed nomination forms of the party’s presidential and vice-presidential candidates.
He noted that Tinubu had earlier emerged as the APC presidential candidate during the party’s primary election and urged members to remain united as preparations intensify for the 2027 general election.
On behalf of APC governors, Imo State Governor Hope Uzodimma commended the party for conducting what he described as a credible primary election and reaffirmed the governors’ support for President Tinubu and the party.
“We are delighted that this event is coming after a well-organised and thoroughly supervised primary process. We reiterate our commitment to continue supporting President Tinubu and the party,” he said.
Uzodimma called on party members to rally behind all APC candidates, expressing optimism that the party would retain power in the next general election.
Receiving the nomination forms, APC National Chairman Yilwatda said the exercise reflected the confidence party members had in Tinubu’s leadership and administration.
He highlighted the student loan programme, ongoing infrastructure projects and agricultural initiatives as key achievements of the government, expressing confidence that the Tinubu-Shettima ticket would earn another mandate from Nigerians.
“We will all come out and mobilise across the six geopolitical zones. I am sure there will be healthy competition among the governors.
“One geopolitical zone has already told me they will deliver the highest number of votes for Mr President. I will be happy to see such competition among the governors as they mobilise their states so that we can see which state will return the highest number of votes for Mr President,” he stated.
Yilwatda added that the APC would campaign on the administration’s performance, expressing confidence that Nigerians would reward President Tinubu with a second term.
Also speaking after the ceremony, APC National Publicity Secretary Felix Morka confirmed that the party had officially retained Tinubu and Shettima as its presidential and vice-presidential candidates.
“The presidential candidate of the party is President Bola Ahmed, the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, and our vice presidential candidate is the Vice President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Senator Kashim Shetima,” he stated.
The submission of the nomination forms formally confirms the Tinubu-Shettima ticket as the APC’s candidates for the 2027 presidential election, bringing to an end months of speculation over the vice president’s position on the party’s ticket.
