APC House of Reps Primaries Fallout: Parallel Polls, Internal Crisis Deepen Nationwide

The All Progressives Congress wrapped up its House of Representatives primaries across Nigeria’s 360 federal constituencies over the weekend. The fallout is ugly. Parallel elections, mass withdrawals, allegations of detention, and shock defeats for sitting lawmakers have left the party scrambling to contain what analysts are already calling its most chaotic intra-party exercise in years.

Parallel Polls, Rejected Results

In several states, aspirants simply walked out, declared their own parallel primaries, and announced themselves winners. Conflicting result sheets circulated on social media by Sunday evening. Multiple candidates from the same constituency each claimed victory. In states where consensus arrangements were adopted, many losers refused to accept the outcomes, insisting the processes were rigged by state-level party structures.

Daily Trust correspondents reported that in some locations, the venue for the exercise was not even publicly known until a few hours before it started, a clear sign of poor coordination in certain states.

Sitting Lawmakers Fall, Claims of Sabotage Rise

Several incumbent House of Representatives members lost their tickets. In Katsina State, aspirant Ahmed Sale Junior claimed he was detained by Department of State Services operatives for four hours immediately before the primary in Mani/Bindawa Federal Constituency. He alleged that rival Jamila Abdu Mani was declared winner with 20,000 votes while he was allocated just 1,000.

The Katsina State Government denied the allegation, saying Governor Dikko Radda has no authority over DSS operations. The story gained traction. It wasn’t the only one. Punch reported that multiple sitting Reps members are already consulting lawyers and considering formal complaints to the APC national leadership.

Senate Primaries Begin Monday

As the House of Representatives primaries concluded, the Senate primaries kicked off Monday. With fewer seats, more money, and more political muscle at stake, the infighting is expected to be even more intense. The APC had already delayed the Reps primaries by a day over disagreements on consensus arrangements.

Party officials insist the process is being managed. The volume of rejections and counter-claims tells a different story. At least five states saw open contestation of results by Sunday night, and the APC’s national leadership has not publicly addressed any of the specific complaints.

What It Means for 2027

These primaries are the first major internal test for the APC ahead of the 2027 general elections. The party controls the presidency and most state governments, but internal cohesion has been fraying. Each rejected result is a potential defection. Each aggrieved incumbent is a voter who may sit out, or worse, back an opposition candidate.

The coming weeks, as results are finalised and appeals pile up, will show whether the APC can absorb this level of internal conflict without serious damage to its electoral machine.

Sources: Punch, Daily Trust, This Day Live, Arise TV