2027: Three months to polls, campaigns, rallies yet to begin

By Clifford Ndujihe

THREE months to the 2027 general elections, political parties and their candidates are yet to fully hit the streets for campaigns, despite the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, opening the campaign window nearly two months ago.

According to the commission’s timetable, the Presidential and National Assembly polls will be held on January 16, 2027 while those of the governorship and state houses of assembly will take place, three weeks later, on February 6, 2027.

INEC cleared the way for Presidential and National Assembly elections campaigns last August 19 and that of the governorship and state assemblies, September 9.

Since then, no serious campaigns have commenced. A couple of the leading parties have raised their Presidential Campaign Councils, PCCs, most are yet to do so.

As it is, exactly 97 days to the Presidential and NASS polls, and 118 days to the governorship and state assembly balloting, no party or candidate has unveiled his/her or its campaign plan and itinerary.

Unlike previous election cycles, when streets would, at this stage, be awash with posters and billboards and candidates would be criss-crossing their constituencies, in an unmistakable poster war, the current political atmosphere is relatively subdued.

Now, the scenario is different as Saturday Vanguard’s checks across the country show. Only a handful of leading parties have constituted campaign councils, while many candidates are concentrating on consultations, grassroots mobilisation, party structures and legal battles.

But where campaigns have begun, another battle is emerging — the struggle for billboards and other public advertising spaces, with allegations of removal, destruction, intimidation and partisan use of regulatory powers.

APC crisis stalls poster war in Ondo

Political activities remain low in Ondo State, with only a few APC candidates displaying posters at strategic locations.

Unlike previous election seasons, there is no poster war, as candidates of opposition parties are largely absent from the streets.

Investigations showed that only a handful of opposition candidates have pasted posters, while many are yet to print theirs.

The development has been linked largely to the crisis within the APC, where several aspirants who lost the party’s primaries have gone to court to challenge the outcome.

Even among incumbent National Assembly members who secured return tickets, only a few have printed and displayed campaign posters.

The uncertainty surrounding candidacies has therefore slowed political activities.

The APC National Working Committee had dropped some aspirants after the primaries, triggering fresh crisis and litigation, which have combined to prevent the usual billboard and poster war.

Meanwhile, billboards bearing the image of APC presidential candidate, Senator Bola Tinubu, are prominent across major towns and roads, while only a few posters of ADC presidential candidate, Alhaji Abubakar Atiku, are visible.

Another factor is that there will be no governorship election in Ondo in 2027. The state will vote in the presidential, National Assembly and State Assembly elections.

Tinubu dominates Ekiti

The situation is similar in Ekiti, where the campaign landscape remains markedly different from the intense poster and billboard competition normally associated with elections.

Tinubu’s posters and billboards are prominent across several locations, while the presence of opposition parties, particularly ADC and NDC, remains subdued.

A major political development is the decision of Dr Wole Oluyede, who contested the June 20, 2026 governorship election on the PDP platform, to support Tinubu’s re-election.

Oluyede has established the Oluyede Progressive Alliance for Renewed Hope Agenda, OPARHA, to mobilise support for Tinubu across the state’s 16 local government areas and 177 wards.

At a mobilisation rally in Ado-Ekiti, Oluyede and Governor Biodun Oyebanji jointly canvassed support for Tinubu and pledged to work for at least 90 per cent of the President’s votes in Ekiti.

For now, the physical campaign landscape is heavily tilted towards Tinubu and the APC.

Osun: No defacing of posters

Osun presents a different picture.

Campaign posters and banners are being displayed competitively without the widespread defacing that characterised the August governorship election.

Different parties have mounted campaign materials at public places without reports of widespread destruction.

The development contrasts sharply with the recent governorship election, which witnessed extensive destruction of posters and billboards belonging to major political parties.

Billboard war, opposition cries foul in Lagos

In Lagos, political activities are taking place amid heightened tension, early mobilisation and strict regulation of public advertising space.

The governorship contest involving the APC, ADC and PDP is attracting more attention than the Senate, House of Representatives and State Assembly contests, which remain relatively subdued.

APC governorship candidate, Dr Obafemi Hamzat, and his running mate, Princess Damilola Sonayon-James, have established a strong presence, alongside President Tinubu.

Billboards bearing the images of Tinubu, Vice President Kashim Shettima and Hamzat are prominent in Ikeja, Alausa, the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway, Obalende and around the Third Mainland Bridge. The posters, which began appearing in August, are also visible around Agege, Alimosho and other areas.

By contrast, billboards of ADC presidential candidate and his running mate, Rotimi Amaechi, as well as NDC presidential candidate, Peter Obi and his running mate, Rabiu Kwankwaso, are yet to achieve comparable visibility.

The opposition has alleged harassment and removal of its campaign materials.

NDC supporters accused the Lagos State Signage and Advertisement Agency, LASAA, of removing more than 50 banners belonging to Peter Obi and House of Representatives candidate, Dr Adefolaseye Adebomi, in Surulere while leaving APC materials intact.

NDC chieftain, Aisha Yesufu, condemned the alleged action, describing it as the behaviour of a party that is “scared, desperate, and crumbling rather than one in control.”

She also criticised the high cost of billboard advertising, alleging that fees running into hundreds of millions of naira were being imposed in some areas.

The Lagos State Government had yet to respond to the allegation at the time of filing this report.

Campaign materials under attack in Ogun

Political activities are gathering momentum in Ogun, with the PDP formally commencing its governorship campaign and the ruling APC intensifying mobilisation across the three senatorial districts.

But posters, banners and billboards mounted in public spaces are increasingly being vandalised.

Some campaign materials have been torn down, defaced or damaged, with different parties and candidates reportedly affected.

The development has raised concerns as the parties intensify grassroots engagement and public messaging ahead of the elections.

The growing appearance of campaign materials on major roads and in communities has already transformed parts of the state into political battlegrounds, even though the full campaign season is yet to peak.

Battle for visibility moves to billboards in Oyo

In Oyo State, the struggle for political visibility is gradually moving to the streets, particularly billboards and posters.

Across Ibadan and other areas, campaign materials of prominent contenders have begun appearing at strategic locations, although the state is yet to witness a full-scale poster war.

Controversy erupted in July when the ADC alleged that a billboard belonging to its governorship candidate, Olooye Taofeek Adegboyega Adegoke, at Idi-Ape Junction, Ibadan, was removed and replaced with materials bearing the images of Governor Seyi Makinde and APM governorship candidate, Bimbo Adekanmbi.

Adegoke said: “My money is still running on that billboard till 20th August 2026.”

The APM denied responsibility, attributing billboard disputes to advertising agencies and regulatory authorities.

The APC later raised similar allegations, claiming that some of its billboards for governorship candidate, Senator Sharafadeen Alli, were being removed or destroyed.

APM again denied involvement, saying: “We do not destroy opponents’ materials, we do not sponsor thuggery, and we do not engage in violence.”

For now, Oyo’s contest is still at the early stage of the battle for public attention, with candidates also relying on radio, television, social media, rallies and consultations.

Candidates stake claims in Delta

Campaign activities in Delta are yet to fully take off, but the political atmosphere is warming up as aspirants intensify consultations with party leaders, traditional rulers, community leaders and supporters.

Posters and billboards belonging to candidates are becoming increasingly visible in Asaba and other major towns, but the development has not translated into a full-blown poster war.

Political actors are adopting a cautious approach, seeking to establish visibility while strengthening party structures and grassroots networks.

For many candidates, consultations and mobilisation are currently more important than committing huge resources to full-scale advertising.

The gradual appearance of posters and billboards, however, indicates that the 2027 contest is entering the public consciousness.

Complaints of billboard destruction rein in Edo

Political activities are picking up across Edo’s three senatorial districts, with junctions and public spaces increasingly competing for campaign posters and banners.

The APC has inaugurated its campaign council, while Governor Monday Okpebholo, his deputy, Dennis Idahosa, and party leaders have commenced mobilisation visits to the state’s 18 local government areas.

The NDC is also campaigning but has complained about attacks on its posters.

The party’s candidate for Akoko-Edo II State Constituency, Paul Alaba Lawani, said the NDC was prepared to defeat the incumbent through its grassroots strength.

Other active campaign groups include the Chief Thomas Attah Movement, backing Dr Thomas Attah’s House of Representatives ambition in Akoko-Edo Federal Constituency, and the Abbaas Naasamu campaign team of the ADC.

However, the campaign has already recorded an allegation of political violence.

Suspected political thugs allegedly attacked the campaign office of NDC candidate for Oredo Federal Constituency, Hon Frank Uyi Omosigho, in Benin City.

Several campaign materials at the Stadium Road office were pulled down and damaged.

Omosigho said youths alerted him to the attack and urged young people not to allow politicians to use them to perpetrate violence.

“My appeal to youths is not to allow politicians to use them to perpetrate violence or other illegal acts. Anyone caught violating the law would face the consequences,” he said. He added: “The campaign materials were meant to introduce candidates and political parties to the electorate. The voters had the right to make their choices independently.”The incident was reported to the police, while the Commissioner of Police and Department of State Services, DSS, were also informed.

Another NDC candidate, St Moses Eromosele, has similarly complained that his billboards were being pulled down and accused the APC.

With the elections drawing closer, the subdued campaign atmosphere across the eight states may soon give way to the familiar frenzy of rallies, posters, billboards and political mobilisation.

For now, however, the battle is being fought largely behind the scenes — in party meetings, courtrooms, consultations and the increasingly contested public spaces where candidates seek to make their first impressions on voters.

Dayo Johnson, Olasunkanmi Akoni, Egufe Yafugborhi, Rotimi Ojomoyela, Ozioruva Aliu, Shina Abubakar, James Ogunnnaike & Adeola Badru contributed to this report

Vanguard News

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