FCT Council Polls and Political Dynamics of 2027
As the Independent National Electoral Commisson gets set to conduct elections into the six Area Councils in the Federal Capital Territory on Saturday, Friday Olokor takes a look at the high stakes, the politics of the 2027 general election, tension among contenders and political parties and reports that the FCT has become a symbolically elevated battleground that cannot be ignored by politicians as Abuja is regarded as a morale boost and measure of national sovereignty.
Although elections to fill vacancies in all the six Area Council seats for the chairmanship and councillorship seats are held off-season, the February 21, 2026 exercise in the Federal Capital Territory are special because the FCT has no state government or state electoral commission and so residents vote under stringent rules as if it’s a federal contest and what observers describe as a kind of experiment in directly administered local democracy.
Documents obtained indicate that the election will involve 1,680,315 registered voters in 2,822 polling units spread across the six Area Councils of Abaji, Abuja Municipal Area Council, Bwari, Gwagwalada, Kuje and Kwali. A total of 570 candidates are contesting 68 constituencies for the positions of Chairmen and Vice-Chairmen as well as 62 Councilorship seats, comprising 10 wards each in five Area Councils and 12 wards in the Abuja Municipal Area Council.
A breakdown shows that Abaji has 135 Polling Units, 79,471 voters; Bwari 485 PUs, 295,711 voters; Gwagwalada 338 PUs, 208,057 voters; Kuje 262 PUs, 148, 286 voters; Kwali 201 PUs, 107,203 voters and AMAC 1,401 PUs, 841,587 voters. While FCT male registered voters stand at 909,912, there are 770,403 female voters and 3,000 for Persons With Disabilities as voters.
Political pundits believe that the contest is going to be fierce for some reasons especially in AMAC with 12 parties fielding candidates where Zakka Christopher popularly known as Maikalangu of the All Progressives Congress (APC) will slug it out with Paul Moses Ogidi of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) and Dantani Zadna of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP). However, keen watchers of the unfolding scenario believe that the AMAC is an APC stronghold. Another strong point is the defection of its candidate from the PDP to the ruling party following the latter’s prolonged internal crisis.
In Bwari, 11 parties are contesting for chairmanship and is going to be contested by Aloysius Ekele, a University of Benin-trained medical doctor on the platform of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) who was said to have empowered youths and widows. Other contenders are
Joshua Ishaku of the APC who was recently declared a candidate by the Supreme Court; Adamu Julius of the PDP and Musa Josiah Abinlo of the ADC.
In Abaji, the APC candidate, Umar Abubakar will lock horns with Sokodabo Musa Bil Yaminu of the PDP and Mohammed Ibrahim of the ADC. For Gwagwala with 11 parties fielding candidates, Yahaya Usman Shehu of the APC will face Danjuma Iko Afanyibada of the ADC, Mohammed Kasim of the PDP, Bala Gano Haladu Khalid of the Social Democratic Party (SDP) and Dada Mohammed Wumi of the New Nigeria People’s Party (NNDP). Danjuma Samuel Shekwolo of the APC will go to battle with Zakwoyi Danlami of the PDP and Knabayi Stephen Adalo of the ADC in Kuje, although he is said to be a popular candidate.
In Kwali, Bandoji Jeremiah of the ADC will confront Daniel Nuhu Kwali of the APC and Haruna Pai Mohammed of the PDP.
Chairman of INEC, Prof Joash Amupitan, at a meeting with stakeholders in Abuja on Wednesday, explains why the FCT Area Council Polls are important in the political existence of Nigeria.
The FCT Resident Electoral Commissioner, Aminu Idris and National Commissioner, Mohammed Haruna, say the commission is ready for the election as all measures are in place for a hitch-free exercise.
To analysts, the FCT Area Council Polls is a crucial test for the 2027 general election on many fronts. The timing of the FCT elections – exactly one year before the 2027 national elections – serves as a rehearsal and chance for parties to mobilise their base and gauge grassroots strength.
The incumbent APC has treated the Area Council contests as a top priority. After losing both the FCT presidential vote and key legislative seats in 2023, the party is eager to regain its political strength in Abuja after a serious defeat in the 2023 presidential election by the Labour Party candidate, Peter Obi with about 59% of the vote to defeat Bola Tinubu of the APC, who managed to secure 19%.
Also, the high stakes are seen in top-level boasts by the FCT Minister, Nyesom Wike to support President Tinubu’s agenda. He threatened to block candidates who do not back the President, underscoring how the FCT vote is seen as a loyalty test for him and the APC.
Another reason for the national interest in the FCT election is the 2023 post-election legal battle over Abuja’s electoral weight. Opposition leaders had argued that Tinubu did not meet the 25% vote requirement in Abuja, but the courts ultimately held that Abuja was merely one state among 37 for these purposes. The Supreme Court effectively affirmed that Abuja must be treated like any other state in the presidential threshold formula.
Despite the high-profile campaigns, voter engagement in FCT area council elections has traditionally been extremely low, especially since 2019 in which only about 19.7% of registered voters in Bwari went to the polls, and a mere 11.5% in the AMAC District. In 2022, the problem persisted as turnout was abysmally poor, with only about 9% of voters coming out to vote. Many new polling units saw almost no voters at all.
As the FCT residents go to the polls this Saturday, one thing is certain: Winners must emerge not by hook or crook but through a transparent exercise. According to critics, this is obviously a test case for Professor Amupitan and INEC.
The February 2026 FCT Area Council elections may seem small, but in reality, they carry many unique stakes.
