The presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), Peter Obi, has said the chances of him contesting the presidency again in 2031 are slim, citing Nigeria’s informal zoning arrangement and his age.
Obi, who will face President Bola Tinubu of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and Atiku Abubakar of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) in the 2027 election, made this known during an interview with media personality Rufai Oseni.
Asked whether he would run for the presidency again if he loses in 2027, Obi explained that the rotation of the presidency between the North and the South would play a major factor in determining his next move after the poll.
“For me, it depends on what happens. I don’t want to say it because people might think that I’m saying it because of some people,” Obi said.
The former Anambra State governor recalled a recent encounter with a secondary school pupil who asked him whether he intended to contest again after 2027.
“You will not believe it, this morning a secondary school boy asked me a question, ‘If you run this time, will you run again?’ And I said no. He asked why?” Obi recounted.
“I said because if I don’t run now, by the next time it comes, believing in the zoning formula, it will go to the North. If it goes North in 2031, by the time it comes again to the South, I will be 78 years old and I don’t think I would be doing this at that age,” he added.
Obi, however, did not completely rule out another presidential bid. He said he could reconsider his position if the presidency remained in the South after the 2027 election, although he described that possibility as unlikely.
“If it’s still in the South in the next election, maybe, but the probability is very slim. I don’t know until after the outcome of the 2027 election,” Obi stated.
The NDC had earlier zoned its 2027 presidential ticket to southern Nigeria for a single four-year term, with the party stating that the ticket would automatically return to the North in 2031.
Peter Obi, born 19 July 1961 in Onitsha, Anambra State, began his political career as a member of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) in 2002. He first contested for the governorship of Anambra State in 2003 but lost to Chris Ngige. After a prolonged legal battle, the Court of Appeal declared Obi the winner, and he assumed office on 17 March 2006.
His tenure was soon interrupted when the state assembly impeached him on 3 November 2006, citing “gross misconduct”. He was reinstated on 9 February 2007 after the Supreme Court annulled the impeachment. However, his removal from office was short-lived when Andy Uba was sworn in on 29 May 2007 following an election. Obi returned to court and the Supreme Court restored him to office, where he served until 17 March 2010. He successfully ran for re-election and completed his second term on 17 March 2014, handing over to Willie Obiano.
In 2014, Obi joined the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and became the party’s vice-presidential candidate alongside Atiku Abubakar in the 2019 election. They lost to Muhammadu Buhari and Yemi Osinbajo. In May 2022, Obi left the PDP shortly before its presidential primary and joined the Labour Party, where he emerged as the party’s presidential candidate for the 2023 election.
His campaign energized millions of young Nigerians, who became known as the “Obidients”. Obi came third in the election with 6.1 million votes, behind Atiku Abubakar and winner Bola Tinubu. He challenged the results but the Supreme Court upheld Tinubu’s victory.
On 31 December 2025, Obi left the Labour Party and joined the African Democratic Congress (ADC) as part of an opposition realignment. He later defected to the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) and was unanimously endorsed as the party’s presidential candidate on 30 May 2026 for the 2027 election. He selected former Kano State Governor Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso as his running mate. Obi has promised to serve only one term if elected, maintaining that the presidency should rotate between the North and the South.
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