Nigerian President Bola Tinubu formally launched his campaign for a second term on Saturday in the northern city of Kaduna, seeking to convince voters that painful economic reforms are beginning to pay off despite a lingering cost-of-living crisis, Reuters reported. By midday, thousands of supporters of his All Progressives Congress (APC) party had filled much of the 10,000-capacity Ranchers Bees Stadium, with more arriving as the rally got under way, and Silverbird TV reported supporters arriving from early morning in campaign colours.
Source: Reuters, Oct 24, 2026
"Thank you for this massive showing up. It is a promise. Come 2027, January 16, you must go out massively and elect me again," Tinubu, 74, told the crowd, Reuters reported. The election, scheduled for January 16, is likely to be dominated by the economy and security; his main challengers include former Vice President Atiku Abubakar and Peter Obi, who finished second and third respectively in 2023.
Source: Reuters, Oct 24, 2026
Since taking office in 2023, Tinubu has scrapped fuel subsidies, devalued the naira and introduced other reforms credited with improving public finances, foreign reserves and investor sentiment — but the measures have also fuelled Nigeria's worst cost-of-living crisis in a generation, Reuters said. Petrol prices rose to about 1,400 naira a litre in Lagos and Abuja in September — yaani about 1.05 US dollars a litre (Reuters put the rate at $1 = 1,330.64 naira) — and as much as 1,500 naira in parts of northern Nigeria.
Source: Reuters, Oct 24, 2026
Tinubu dismissed opposition complaints about hunger and poverty, arguing his rivals created those problems. "They created the hunger. They created the poverty. We are trying to eradicate it," he said, according to Reuters. Phrank Shaibu, a spokesperson for the Atiku campaign, told Reuters the president was attempting to dodge responsibility: "Mr President, blaming the opposition for hunger is either delusion or a staggering case of political amnesia," he said.
Source: Reuters, Oct 24, 2026
At the same Kaduna event, Tinubu also inaugurated an 81-kilometre section of the Abuja-Kaduna highway through a virtual commissioning, performing a symbolic ribbon-cutting at the rally venue, according to a statement by presidential spokesman Bayo Onanuga reported by Okay News. The Presidency identified the section as Lot 1 of the Abuja-Kaduna-Zaria-Kano Dual Carriageway, built with continuously reinforced concrete pavement and fitted with streetlights; Vice President Kashim Shettima and Kaduna State Governor Uba Sani also addressed the gathering, Okay News said.
Source: Okay News (State House statement), Oct 24, 2026
Security will provide another test, Reuters noted: Nigeria continues to battle armed bandits and kidnappers in the northwest and a 17-year Islamist insurgency in the northeast, where militants have stepped up attacks on military positions. Tinubu's camp says he has the backing of 32 of Nigeria's 36 state governors, potentially giving him an unprecedented organisational advantage, although past elections have shown governors cannot always deliver their states. He has said he will not attend rallies in all 36 states, and the party timetable has him personally attending rallies in 12 states, ending in his home state of Lagos on January 9.
Source: Reuters, Oct 24, 2026