Atiku Abubakar, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) candidate in the 2023 presidential election, has expressed interest in trying his luck at the presidency again in 2027.
Although it remains unclear if President Bola Tinubu will seek re-election, he is considered a major threat to the former vice-president's ambition.
Atiku has contested for the presidency several times without success. However, ahead of 2027, there are predictions that he stands a chance.
Luck may smile on him in the 2027 presidential election if he can secure the northern alliance, reconcile with Peter Obi and Kwankwaso and ensure their return to the PDP, regain the Southeast's support and explore the internal crisis in the All Progressives Congress (APC).
Atiku and securing the Northern Alliance
The former vice president's recent visit to immediate past President Muhammadu Buhari was strategic, and it appeared to be a move to secure the Northern alliance ahead of the next presidential election.
Though the PDP leader said he had visited Buhari on a Sallah homage, the associate disclosed that the two Nigerian leaders discussed the 2023 and 2027 presidential elections.
Atiku's visit to Buhari has been described as 'historic' because it will be the first since the former vice president left the APC soon after forming an alliance with the former president before the 2015 election.
Buhari was not the only former president Atiku visited; he had earlier visited former president Ibrahim Babangida and ex-head of state, Abdulsalami Abubakar, both in Minna, the Niger state capital.
Obi, Kwankwaso's return to PDP
Another permutation Atiku needed to realise his presidential ambition in 2027 is to secure a great alliance with the Labour Party and the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP) presidential candidates in the 2023 elections, Peter Obi and Rabiu Kwankwaso.
While Obi became a force in the 2023 presidential election when he swept the votes of the Southeast and North-Central, Kwankwaso made a significant statement through Kano votes.
Atiku must regain Southeast support
Atiku also needs to work on securing the South East for his presidential aspiration. The region has been a comfort for the PDP since the return of democracy in Nigeria in 1999.
However, the last two elections have told a different story, as the PDP has gradually lost four of the five states in the region to the APC, the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA), and the Labour Party.
The umbrella party also performed woefully in the 2023 presidential election, as Obi swept most of the votes across the five states in the Southeast.
Explore APC's internal crisis
While Tinubu is much more aware of the APC's internal crisis and will work to ensure it does not affect his second-term bid, Atiku still needs to explore the crisis to achieve his ambition come 2027.
Atiku should begin forming alliances with the party's aggrieved members and ensure they work to his advantage.
Tinubu reportedly has issues with prominent figures like Nasir El-Rufai, Yahaya Bello, Kayode Fayemi, Ibikunle Amosun, and Femi Fani-Kayode.
Four of them are former governors, while Fani-Kayode is a former minister.