Ondo APC Elders Launch Drive to Mobilise 1.5 Million Voters for Tinubu in 2027
Some elders of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Ondo State have unveiled plans to mobilise at least 1.5 million registered voters in the state to support President Bola Tinubu’s re-election bid in 2027.
Speaking under the aegis of the Ondo State APC Elders Movement, the group noted that while the state delivered victory to Tinubu in 2023, voter turnout was low, with less than 30 per cent of registered voters participating.
They stressed that their new target is designed to tackle apathy and secure overwhelming support for the president.
At a meeting in Akure on Monday, Chairman of the movement, Senator Nimbe Farunkanmi, said the elders were determined to ensure that 90 per cent of Ondo votes go to Tinubu by mobilising at the grassroots.
He said, “This is the elders’ movement for Tinubu’s continuity, and this is not a case of ‘I am a support group.’ This type of meeting is going to be held at the local government, it’s going to be held at the wards, and it’s going to be held at the units for Tinubu’s re-election.”
Another leader of the movement, Mr. Jamiu Ekungba, explained that the mobilisation effort would be anchored on commitment. He stressed that the group had already begun encouraging citizens to participate in the ongoing voter registration exercise.
He said, “You know, in the last election, we tried it and we were able to achieve it because for the governor to win 366,000 votes was unusual. So, as somebody has said, we are going to deliver 1.5 million votes to Tinubu, and it is possible because currently registered voters in the state are 1.9 million.
“The problem is that people don’t come out to vote. So what the elders want to do now is to persuade everybody to come out and vote, and we’re going to vote massively for Tinubu in such a way that has never been done. So that when we return that figure, nobody would say something happened, because it’s going to be real votes.”
Ondo State representative at the National Population Commission, Mrs. Olukemi Iyantan, added that the elders’ movement had shifted focus to 2027 after the state’s governorship election in November 2024.
She said, “We are focusing on the achievements and the victory at the polls in 2027 for the re-election of our president, Bola Tinubu.
The issue is the unity of purpose, how we can form a unified force, especially with the creation of the elders’ movement.
“So whatever the elders do, consult them for knowledge and wisdom. It will help us to reach where we are going, unlike before, when we didn’t even have leaders; that’s why you saw the party in shambles.
But now that we have leaders and elders committed to the cause of 2027, the re-election of our president, you know that we can go higher, go everywhere so that we can achieve our aim.”*
With the Independent National Electoral Commission’s (INEC) Continuous Voter Registration exercise already underway, the Ondo APC elders said their priority is to ensure citizens register and turn out to vote, positioning the state as a major contributor to Tinubu’s re-election.
