Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar don emerge as the presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) for the 2027 general election after he defeated Rotimi Amaechi and Mohammed Hayatu-Deen during the party primary election.

The result was announced by the party after accredited members across the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory participated in the direct primary process.

According to the official figures released by the ADC, Atiku secured 1,855,787 votes, while former Minister of Transportation Rotimi Amaechi got 509,397 votes.Former banker Mohammed Hayatu-Deen finished third with 180,903 votes.The total votes cast during the election stood at 2,546,457 out of more than 3.1 million registered party members eligible to vote.The large margin of victory showed Atiku’s strong influence inside the party as he defeated Amaechi with more than 1.3 million votes difference.

Before the primary election, some party stakeholders reportedly pushed for a consensus arrangement to avoid internal disagreements before the 2027 election.However, the three leading aspirants refused to step down for one another, forcing the ADC leadership to continue with a full primary election.The party said the adoption of the direct primary system was in line with the Electoral Act 2026 and part of its commitment to internal democracy.

Meanwhile, both Amaechi and Hayatu-Deen later raised concerns about alleged irregularities in the process and reportedly boycotted the official announcement of the results.

Atiku’s emergence is expected to shape opposition politics ahead of the 2027 presidential election as parties prepare to challenge the current ruling party at the federal level.