Oyo 2027: The Race to Succeed Makinde Is Already Getting Messy

If you thought Oyo State politics would quietly wait for 2027, think again. The election is still months away, but the battle to control Oyo State after Seyi Makinde has already produced party rebellions, disputed primaries, accusations of imposition, political alliances, court battles, corruption questions and increasingly personal attacks between political camps. Seyi Makinde himself will not be on the Oyo governorship ballot in 2027but his name still rings in the coming election.  After two terms, the question is no longer whether Makinde will return to Government House, it is who gets to inherit the political structure he leaves behind  and whether Oyo voters want continuity or a change of direction.

INEC has scheduled the 2027 governorship and State House of Assembly elections for March 6, 2027. INEC Nigeria and it is already a lot to talk about.

To understand the 2027 race, you have to go back to the last governorship election. In 2023, Makinde, running under the PDP, secured re-election with 563,756 votes, while APC candidate Teslim Folarin recorded 256,685 votes, according to the declared result reported by Channels Television. Channels Television. 

The 2023 result suggested that a candidate could survive a complicated political environment but 2027 may present a different equation because this time, there is no incumbent governor seeking re-election.

The Governor Makinde has chosen to back former Oyo Commissioner for Finance Abimbola Adekanmbi, who eventually emerged as the governorship candidate of the Allied Peoples' Movement (APM). The Guardian reported that a 21-member PDP stakeholder panel voted 20–1 in favor of Debo Akande, rather than Adekanmbi, before the political process moved in a different direction. The report also documented concerns raised by stakeholders about Adekanmbi's previous political record. The Guardian Nigeria

This raises a question in politics who actually controls the machinery of a political party, party members, stakeholders, or the incumbent political heavyweight?

Adekanmbi has since pushed back against the idea that he would simply be Makinde's proxy. Speaking on Arise TV, he rejected the suggestion that he would be a political “stooge” and said he would provide independent leadership if elected.  Naming himself the continuity candidate The Guardian Nigeria. This is something that should be questioned can a candidate campaign continuity while convincing voters that he will operate independently?

 APC on the other hand with their internal battle has also been a major storyline with former minister of power Adebayo Adelabu who complained about the primary process after he did sought the party ticket he alleged that there were problems with fairness, transparency and collation of results he announced subsequently that he would not pursue a court action or appeal but he still calls for the party to address his grievances Businessday NG. 

With senator Sharafadeen Alli eventually emerging as the Party's 2027 governorship candidate with Adesoji Adedeji as his running mate. The party says it wants to unite its members and strengthen its grassroots structure ahead of the election. Channels Television. but the question still lies can reconciliation clear out the damage? Can a party that had aspirants openly challenging its primary process enter a general election with one united structure?

But the matter isn't at a close yet, with Makinde and Alli getting personal this chapter gets interesting as both keeps trading criticisms over their professional backgrounds and records on public office, Makinde questioned Alli's experience as a Lawyer and Alli's campaign organisation responded by attacking aspects of Makinde's record as an engineer and questioning projects including the state's streetlight programme and Lekan Salami Stadium renovation. These are claims made by the respective political camps, not independent findings established by those reports. TheCable. With the EFFC July 2026 accusation on the Oyo state finances which has given the Oyo APC an armor against the Makinde administration they accuse them of trying to prevent scrutiny of its financial records which they replied, The state government rejected that interpretation and said seeking judicial clarification was not an attempt to frustrate an investigation. Punch Newspapers

Meanwhile the ADC party with their running candidate Taofeeq Adegboyega who choses to run his campaign without personal attacks just issue-based, from the issue of poverty, insecurity, agriculture, education, local government autonomy and accountability, including a proposed system of consequence management for local government officials. Businessday NG

But what should the Oyo state citizen be looking out for in this coming election? Will voters judge the candidates by the volume of their campaign promises or by the evidence behind them?

Politics is usually discussed in terms of polls, predictions and arguments on social media.

OpinionMarket.ng  adds another layer: a live market where users can trade their views on outcomes. The Oyo 2027 governorship market currently lets users follow the competing outcomes and see how market expectations change as new information enters the political conversation.

Who Will Win The Oyo State Governorship Election? with Sharafadeen Abiodun at 33%, Abimbola Adekanmbi at 30% and Hazeem Gbolarumi at 30% others at 7%

What will your prediction be on go ahead and trade.