Year in Review: List of Most Influential Nigerian Politicians in 2023
Legit.ng journalist Adekunle Dada has over 5 years of experience covering metro and government policy
It takes a lot to be relevant in the political sphere in Nigeria and not all politicians have been able to achieve that in every election cycle.
The ability to influence voters and deliver local government areas into states are few of what it means to remain politically relevant.
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In this article, Legit.ng listed the most influential politicians across the country in 2023.
President Bola Tinubu
With nearly two decades of building political bridges across the country, investing in individuals and setting up political structures, it is no gainsaying that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu was well-prepared for the 2023 election.
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Winning a presidential election is not an easy feat and doing it for the first time with a political party that Nigerians have lost hope in must count for something.
Tinubu’s ability and negotiation skills were brought to bear as he was able to convince Wike, a key member of the main opposition party, PDP, to work for his emergence ahead of Peter Obi, who was in the same party with the former Rivers state governor.
Nyesom Wike
The minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, was one of the most influential politicians in Nigeria during the 2023 general election.
Wike's insistence that the presidency must return to the South and the role he played in the emergence of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu showed that he is a politician that cannot be ignored.
Before the 2023 presidential election, Port-Harcourt became the new political capital of Nigeria due to the number of politicians who visited Rivers state to seek the support of the then governor, Leadership newspaper reported.
The presidential candidates of the Labour Party, Peter Obi and Musa Rabiu Kwankwaso, of the New Nigeria People’s Party (NNPP) were not left out in the visitation.
Even the All Progressives Congress' (APC) Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu sent his delegation led by Lagos state governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, Ondo State, Rotimi Akeredolu and former governor of Ekiti State, Dr Kayode Fayemi, to get Wike’s endorsement.
Peter Obi
The emergence of Peter Obi into the 2023 presidential race brought about the third force which disrupted the status quo of Nigeria's political sphere.
As reported by Vanguard, previous elections in the country have always been a two-horse race between the ruling party and the main opposition party. But Obi changed the narrative in the last election.
The influence of the former Anambra governor was so strong that a movement “Obidient” was birth to drive his presidential campaign for his hope of a better Nigeria. The Obidient movement challenged Obi to contest the 2023 presidential election.
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Polling over 6 million votes with a relatively unknown party that doesn't boast of the structure and resources that its rivals had was unexpected for a first-timer in the presidential race.
Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso
With over five million voters and the second highest in the country, winning Kano state is important to any serious candidate who wants to emerge as the winner of the presidential election in Nigeria.
Kwankwaso did not only win the Kano state in the presidential election, he delivered the state in the governorship election and his party, the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP), won most of the seats in the state and national assembly elections.
He proved that Kano is his stronghold and that his influence as a former governor is still intact irrespective of the political party he represents.
Atiku Abubakar
The former vice president and presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic (PDP) in the 2023 election has a rich political profile that spans several decades.
Atiku announced his entrance into Nigeria’s political scene in 1999 after he was made the vice president to Olusegun Obasanjo based on his influence as the head of the political structure of late Yar’Adua in northern state, Vanguard report.
His emergence came after he won the Adamawa state governorship under the platform of the PDP on his fourth attempt.
As reported by Premium Times, Atiku while speaking during an interaction with leaders of over 200 support groups across, said:
“For example, I contested for the governorship position four times before I was finally elected”
“I’m a foot soldier for Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda”: Wike declares
Meanwhile, Legit.ng reported that Wike made a strong statement regarding his efforts to boost Abuja's tourism potential under the Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA).
The FCT minister disclosed that he was one of the foot soldiers of President Tinubu, desirous to see that the renewed hope agenda of the ruling APC was fulfilled.
He made this assertion on Monday, November 13, when he received the UAE ambassador to Nigeria, Salem Al-Shamsi, who paid him a courtesy visit.
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Source: Legit.ng
