The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Lagos State faces near-collapse as key leaders, including Publicity Secretary Alhaji Hakeem Amode, defect to the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC). This follows the earlier exit of 2023 governorship candidate Jandor, signaling a crisis for Nigeria’s once-dominant opposition. In the 2023 elections, PDP failed to win any state assembly or federal seats, trailing behind APC and Labour Party (LP). Despite PDP’s claims of resilience, analysts declare its Lagos structure "leaderless and irrelevant."
- Mass Defections: Top PDP leaders, including Amode and Jandor, abandoned the party for the APC, citing internal sabotage and a lack of direction.
- Electoral Collapse: PDP won zero seats in Lagos’ 2023 polls, APC took 38 assembly seats, LP secured 2, while PDP’s governorship votes (62,449) were less than one LGA’s tally.
- LP’s Rise: The Labour Party capitalized on the PDP’s decline, leveraging the youth-driven "Obidient Movement" to become Lagos’s new opposition force.
Lagos PDP’s implosion reflects deeper political realignments. Once Africa’s largest party, its decline underscores APC’s dominance and LP’s disruptive rise. But is this a Lagos-specific crisis or a national trend? Defectors blame PDP’s infighting, while critics accuse APC of stifling opposition. With 2027 looming, can PDP rebuild, or will Lagos become a one-party stronghold? The answer hinges on whether PDP addresses its leadership vacuum, or if LP permanently replaces it as APC’s main challenger.
Sources: Daily Post, PDP Statement, Election Data
