Amaechi Defeats Atiku, Others in ADC Bayelsa Primary

Rotimi Amaechi, a former minister of transportation and a presidential candidate in the African Democratic Congress (ADC) presidential primary election, has defeated former Vice President Atiku Abubakar and other candidates in the party’s primary election in Bayelsa State.

The former transportation minister secured 44,404 votes to clinch the Bayelsa State presidential primary.

Amaechi Defeats Atiku, Others in ADC Bayelsa Primary (News Central TV) — ADC. Credit: Channels TV.

Atiku emerged second behind Amaechi with 6,570 votes, while Hayatu-Deen polled 939 votes.

Early figures show that Atiku is leading in the primaries. The party is, however, yet to release the final results at press time.

Amaechi, who was formerly a member of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), teamed up with Atiku and former Senate President David Mark to unseat President Bola Tinubu of the ruling party in the 2027 election.

Author

Olayide Soaga

Olayide Oluwafunmilayo Soaga is a Nigerian journalist with four years of professional experience. She reports on health, gender, education and development, with a focus on impact-driven storytelling.

She was runner-up for the Centre for Journalism Innovation and Development (CJID) Best Solutions Journalism Award in West Africa in 2024 and a finalist for the 2025 West Africa Media Excellence Awards.