INEC Figures: How the North-West and South-West Could Hold the Key to Aso Rock

Nigeria’s 2026 electoral register lists 25,083,411 voters in the North-West and 19,614,274 in the South-West, together accounting for more than 43% of registered voters nationwide. The regions will carry significant weight in the 2027 presidential election, but candidates must turn voter numbers into ballots and build alliances beyond their strongholds. Bola Tinubu has a longstanding political network in the South-West, though it does not guarantee victory there: Peter Obi beat him in Lagos in 2023 by 9,848 votes. Atiku Abubakar and Obi will seek to upset the balance and deny Tinubu a second term.