The nomination and affirmation of the All Progressives Congress (APC) governorship and senate candidates for 2027 general election has shut out women despite clamour for women inclusion in politics, WikkiTimes analysis revealed.
The independent national electoral commission (INEC) data shows that about half of voters in Nigeria are women but the numerical strength did not translate into a better representation in political leadership.
This is coming 30 years after Nigeria signed the Beijing Declaration and committed to affirmative action for women representation in politics.
According to an analysis of the APC’s 2027 candidates, no woman clinched the party’s governorship ticket and only three women succeeded out of 109 senatorial candidates nationwide.
ElectHER analysis of 2023 polls indicated that out of 1,553 women who contested for political seats in Nigeria, only 72 were elected across states and federal levels.
The development has raised fresh concerns among gender advocates and political analysts over Nigeria’s failure to implement affirmative action commitments and inclusion policies repeatedly adopted since the country became a signatory to the 1995 Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action.
No Woman on Governorship List
The APC’s emerging governorship structure is dominated entirely by men across states where alignments and affirmations have already taken place.
Available data shows that governorship candidates include Eric Opah in Abia, Ahmed Galadima in Adamawa, Umo Eno in Akwa Ibom, Mohammed Abubakar in Bauchi, Hyacinth Alia in Benue, Mustapha Gubio in Borno, Bassey Otu in Cross River, Sheriff Oborevwori in Delta, Francis Nwifuru in Ebonyi and Peter Mbah in Enugu.
Others are Jamilu Gwamna in Gombe, Umar Namadi in Jigawa, Uba Sani in Kaduna, Abba Yusuf in Kano, Dikko Radda in Katsina, Nasir Idris in Kebbi, Yakubu Danladi-Salihu in Kwara, Obafemi Hamzat in Lagos, Ahmed Wadada in Nasarawa, Umaru Bago in Niger and Solomon Adeola in Ogun.
The list also includes Sharafadeen Alli in Oyo, Caleb Muftwang in Plateau, Ogundu Kingsley Chinda in Rivers, Ahmad Aliyu in Sokoto, Agbu Kefas in Taraba and Baba Malam Wali in Yobe as well as Dauda Lawal in Zamfara.
No female aspirant appeared in any of the identified states.
The complete absence of women means female representation currently stands at zero per cent among the APC’s governorship hopefuls.
Eight states — Anambra, Bayelsa, Edo, Ekiti, Imo, Kogi, Ondo and Osun — did not conduct governorship primaries because of their off-cycle election schedules.
Only Three Women Among Senatorial Candidates
The Senate data presents only marginally better representation.
WikkiTimes analysis shows that out of the 109 APC senatorial candidates nationwide, only three women emerged.
They are Kene Chiedu Ngozi Benedicta for Anambra Central, Muheebah Dankaka for Kwara South and Idiat Adebule for Lagos West.
The figures mean women account for just 2.8 per cent of identified senatorial hopefuls under the ruling party. The remaining 106 identified candidates are men.
Commenting on the figures, Zainab Nasir Ahmad, Executive Director of Youth Society for the Prevention of Infectious Diseases and Social Vices and a women rights activist, said the data showed that women’s political inclusion in Nigeria remained “more of an aspiration rather than a reality.”
“When there are no women among the governorship candidates and only three out of 109 senatorial hopefuls are women, the figures speak for themselves,” she said.
“Despite commitments to gender equality and affirmative action, women still face significant barriers in accessing party structures, securing nominations and competing on equal footing with men.”
According to her, political parties must move beyond rhetoric and deliberately create opportunities for women to participate in leadership and decision-making.
Also speaking, Ms Aliyu said weak economic independence among women, cultural expectations and negative societal perceptions continue to undermine women’s political participation.
“Women’s political participation, especially in northern Nigeria, remains weak owing to economic dependence, cultural expectations and societal attitudes that discourage women from seeking leadership positions,” she said.
Experts Identify Structural Barriers
Prof. Kamilu Fagge, a professor of political science at Bayero University Kano, said the persistent exclusion of women from Nigerian politics was rooted in deep structural and cultural factors.
“Democracy is about participation. It is about exerting your rights,” he said.
According to him, one of the major obstacles is Nigeria’s male-dominated social structure.
“Whether it is an Islamic society, Christian society or traditional society, women tend to be made less visible in public affairs,” he said.
Mr Fagge also argued that many women have not fully utilised their numerical strength as voters to influence political outcomes.
“In Nigeria, women form a significant portion of the voting population, but they have not acted with collective political consciousness to support fellow women,” he said.
He cited the example of the late Sarah Jibril, who secured only one vote during the Peoples’ Democratic Party presidential primary despite the presence of many female delegates.
The professor also blamed the monetisation and violent nature of Nigerian politics for discouraging women from participation.
“Politics is now seen as a dirty game involving intimidation, corruption, night meetings and violence, and this creates additional barriers for women,” he added.
However, the academic questioned whether quota systems could work effectively within an electoral democracy.
“You cannot force the electorate to elect a woman. In democracy, it is the electorate that ultimately decides,” he said.
Dr Ruqayya Yusuf Aliyu of the Department of Information and Media Studies, Bayero University, Kano, said the APC figures reflect broader challenges confronting women in political system.
According to her, women continue to face significant structural barriers in securing major party nominations.
“Nigerian politics remains largely male-dominated. Leadership is often culturally associated with men, and women who seek political office frequently face stereotypes and are frustrated out of the process,” she said.
Ms Aliyu identified the high cost of politics as another major obstacle.
“Just the way life has been made artificially difficult for Nigerians, so it is in politics for women. The contest has been made so costly that it is not affordable even for many competent women,” she said.
She also cited political violence, insecurity and harassment as factors discouraging women from seeking office.
“Elections and party primaries are often characterised by intimidation, violence and harassment. Female aspirants face gender-based threats and online abuse in addition to conventional political violence,” she added.
The academic further blamed weak implementation of gender inclusion commitments, lack of internal party democracy, godfatherism, nepotism and bribery for limiting women’s access to elective positions.
Activist Calls for Reforms, Sanctions
Ms Ahmad disagreed with claims that women fail to emerge simply because they cannot compete during primaries.
“I do not entirely agree with that argument because women are not given equal opportunities from the beginning,” she said.
According to her, women face structural barriers including weak political networks, limited access to campaign financing, cultural stereotypes, intimidation and political violence.
She said political parties must institutionalise enforceable gender quotas instead of relying on voluntary commitments.
“There should also be reforms to reduce the high cost of nomination forms and political participation,” she said.
The activist further called for legal sanctions against political parties that fail to comply with affirmative action policies.
“The numbers are highly discouraging. Women are being left behind in a democratic setting that constantly talks about inclusion,” she added.
North East, North West States Record Zero Female Representation
A further analysis of the data shows that most northern states recorded no female senatorial candidate under the APC structure.
States from North West and North East including Kano, Kaduna, Katsina, Kebbi, Sokoto, Zamfara, Yobe, Bauchi, Gombe, Adamawa, Jigawa and Borno did not produce any female senatorial hopeful.
However, a north central state of Kwara produced a female candidate, Muheebah Dankaka for Kwara South. Other states in the zone such as Plateau, Benue, Kogi, Nasarawa and Niger have no female senatorial candidate.
Political analysts say the trend reflects longstanding structural barriers, elite patronage systems, weak internal democracy within political parties and financial disadvantages confronting women in politics.
Beijing Declaration Versus Political Reality
While supporting greater inclusion of women in politics, Ms Aliyu cautioned that representation should be accompanied by competence and merit.
“I want to see a situation where women are well represented in politics and in all other sectors, but it should not be representation for its own sake. We need competent women of calibre occupying these positions so that Nigeria can benefit from their contributions,” she said.
She warned that continued exclusion of women from governance would have far-reaching consequences for national development.
“With low female representation, gender-based issues will continue to persist. Nigerian women will remain in the background while women in other parts of the world are making meaningful contributions to development processes,” she said.
The academic noted that Nigeria compares poorly with several African countries on women’s political representation.
“Countries such as Rwanda, Mozambique, Botswana and South Africa have made far greater progress in women’s political inclusion. Nigeria’s poor performance is largely a consequence of the structural and institutional barriers that continue to hold women back,” she added.
Nigeria adopted the Beijing Declaration in 1995 alongside 188 other countries, committing to policies aimed at removing barriers against women in politics and governance.
Successive governments also adopted a 35 per cent affirmative action target for women in appointive and elective positions.
However, three decades later, the APC’s emerging 2027 candidate structure suggests that implementation remains largely symbolic.
Women currently constitute nearly half of Nigeria’s population and voting strength, yet their representation within the country’s mainstream political structures remains among the lowest in Africa.
With preparations for the 2027 elections intensifying, gender advocates say the latest figures once again expose the gap between Nigeria’s international commitments and the realities of party politics.
