Tinubu backs Hamzat   as Lagos APC leaders rally behind consensus candidate

President Bola Tinubu has formally endorsed the 2027 governorship aspiration of Obafemi Hamzat, Deputy Governor of Lagos State, further consolidating support within the All Progressives Congress (APC) for his emergence as the party’s consensus candidate.

The endorsement was disclosed on Wednesday by presidential spokesperson Bayo Onanuga, who said the president gave his backing during a meeting with members of the Lagos Governance Advisory Council (GAC) at the State House in Abuja.

“President Tinubu formally endorses the Lagos APC consensus governorship candidate Obafemi Hamzat at a meeting with members of the Lagos Governance Advisory Council, led by Prince Tajudeen Oluyole Olusi and Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu,” Onanuga stated.

Photographs from the meeting showed President Tinubu and Hamzat holding the nomination form, flanked by Babajide Sanwo-Olu, while GAC leader Tajudeen Oluyole Olusi stood beside the deputy governor.

Other prominent APC leaders present included Femi Gbajabiamila, Chief of Staff to the President; Tokunbo Abiru, Senator representing Lagos East; and Musiliu Obanikoro, among others.

The president’s endorsement comes less than 48 hours after Governor Sanwo-Olu publicly declared support for Hamzat as his preferred successor.

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At a meeting with party leaders held at Lagos House, Alausa, on Monday, Sanwo-Olu described his deputy as the “best man for the job” and openly threw his weight behind his candidacy. In a symbolic gesture that drew applause from party faithful, the governor embraced Hamzat and raised his hand before the gathering.

The momentum behind Hamzat’s aspiration gained further traction the following day when the Governance Advisory Council — regarded as the apex decision-making body of the APC in Lagos — unanimously endorsed him as the party’s consensus candidate for the 2027 governorship election.

Speaking after a meeting at Lagos House, Marina, Olusi announced that members of the council had agreed to rally behind Hamzat’s candidacy, signalling a coordinated party strategy ahead of the polls.

With endorsements now secured from the incumbent governor, the GAC, and President Tinubu, Hamzat’s emergence as the APC’s standard-bearer in Lagos appears firmly consolidated, setting the stage for an early alignment of party structures ahead of the 2027 governorship contest.