(DDM) – Fresh revelations suggest that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has reached a clandestine agreement with several southern governors to conduct all elections in one day by November 2026, in exchange for guaranteed re-election and political security.
Diaspora Digital Media (DDM) gathered from multiple credible sources that the arrangement is part of a broader strategy by the presidency to tighten control over Nigeria’s political landscape ahead of the 2027 general elections.
Insiders disclosed that the wave of defections from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to the All Progressives Congress (APC) across southern states is not coincidental, but a direct result of this pact.
In Delta State, Governor Sheriff Oborevwori led a mass defection in April 2025, abandoning the PDP alongside his deputy and commissioners, a move President Tinubu hailed as a “political tsunami.”
Former Governor Ifeanyi Okowa also crossed over to the APC, further consolidating Tinubu’s control of the oil-rich region.
Similarly, Enugu State Governor Peter Mbah defected to the APC in October 2025, breaking a 26-year streak of PDP dominance.
Bayelsa State’s governor soon followed, deepening the party’s influence in the southern corridor.
According to the report, Tinubu assured defecting governors that the federal government would guarantee their re-election if they aligned politically with the APC.
In return, the governors proposed that all elections, presidential, governorship, National Assembly, and state assembly, be conducted on the same day, or that the presidential election be held last to prevent betrayal among political allies.
Sources confirmed that Tinubu agreed to the proposal.
The alleged deal also includes a plan to abolish the electronic transmission of results from polling units, a reform widely seen as one of the key transparency provisions of the 2022 Electoral Act.
Instead, results would reportedly be transmitted only from collation centres, a process critics warn could facilitate manipulation at the state and federal levels.
“The idea is to have total control of the process and prevent early results from influencing other elections,” a source disclosed.
Furthermore, the 2026 election timeline will reportedly shift from the traditional February–March window to November 2026, to “reduce electoral tension” and “ensure logistical readiness,” according to the discussions.
However, the alleged plan triggered a major rift between President Tinubu and former INEC Chairman, Professor Mahmood Yakubu, who reportedly resigned abruptly after rejecting an offer to extend his tenure.
Yakubu’s insistence on registering new political parties and recognising the takeover of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) was said to have infuriated powerful figures within Tinubu’s inner circle.
Sources within the Presidency told DDM that Imo State Governor Hope Uzodinma personally intervened, warning the President that Yakubu’s continued stay at INEC could “destabilise APC’s 2027 plans.”
Following this intervention, Tinubu allegedly directed Yakubu to proceed on terminal leave, paving the way for the Senate’s confirmation of Professor Joash Amupitan as the new INEC Chairman.
Political observers view these developments as signs of deepening centralization of electoral power under the APC, potentially threatening Nigeria’s fragile democratic balance.
Critics warn that if executed, the one-day election plan could erode transparency, overwhelm logistics, and further weaken public trust in the electoral system.
Civil society organizations have begun calling for clarity from INEC and the Presidency, demanding assurances that the 2026 elections will uphold free, fair, and credible standards in line with the Electoral Act and constitutional principles.
As of press time, the Presidency has not issued an official response to the report.
