President holds closed-door meeting with Progressives Governors Forum members after NEC session as ruling party steps up election preparations

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu on Thursday, August 27, 2026, met with governors elected on the platform of the All Progressives Congress at the Presidential Villa in Abuja, in an engagement coming amid intensified preparations for the 2027 general election.

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The meeting, involving members of the Progressives Governors Forum, began shortly before 4pm after the governors had emerged from a separate session of the National Economic Council chaired by Vice President Kashim Shettima.

The agenda of the meeting was not immediately disclosed as the discussions continued at the time of filing this report. (Vanguard News)

The Tinubu Meets APC Governors engagement comes at a politically significant moment, just eight days after the formal commencement of campaigns for the 2027 general election under the timetable released by the Independent National Electoral Commission.

It also follows the APC’s constitution of its Presidential Campaign Council, announced on August 22, with Tinubu serving as chairman and Shettima as vice chairman. Former Zamfara State Governor, Senator Abdulaziz Yari, was named Director-General, while Imo State Governor Hope Uzodimma was appointed secretary. (State House)

The campaign council brings together senior party leaders, governors, lawmakers and political strategists and has been tasked with coordinating the ruling party’s efforts ahead of the 2027 presidential election.

Tinubu subsequently charged members of the council to work towards securing victory for the APC, urging them to highlight the administration’s record and engage Nigerians across the country. (State House)

The latest meeting with APC governors therefore places the party’s state-level leadership at the centre of its emerging electoral strategy.

Governors are particularly important to the ruling party’s mobilisation efforts because of their influence over party structures and grassroots organisation within their respective states.

The engagement also comes amid recent discussions within the APC over the composition of its campaign council.

The Presidency clarified this week that the published list remains valid, although adjustments are expected as additional subcommittees are constituted.

Presidential aide Sunday Dare said the list had not been withdrawn and that further names could be accommodated through the subcommittees.

“So that list has not been withdrawn. The APC has issued a statement to that effect yesterday, that list stands. But of course, there will be adjustments. The list is not cast in stone, just like every other list,” Dare said. (Channels Television)

The timing of Tinubu’s meeting with the governors also reflects the increasingly active political environment surrounding the 2027 contest. Opposition parties are separately working on their campaign structures and alliances following the official opening of the campaign period.

For the APC, however, the immediate task is to consolidate its political structures and coordinate federal and state-level efforts as the election approaches.

While no official statement had been issued on the specific outcome of Thursday’s meeting at the time of filing, the discussions between the President and APC governors are expected to attract attention given the strategic role the governors are likely to play in the ruling party’s 2027 campaign.

The meeting also follows the governors’ participation in the National Economic Council, where federal and state leaders deliberate on economic and developmental matters, providing an additional setting for discussions involving the country’s political leadership.

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With the 2027 election campaign now formally underway, Thursday’s engagement underscores the growing political activity within the governing party as Tinubu’s administration and the APC prepare for another nationwide electoral contest.