Former Nigerian police chief Mohammed Adamu has emerged as the Social Democratic Party’s governorship candidate in Nasarawa State, replacing Musa Angbazo just days after electoral authorities listed the latter as the party’s flag bearer.
Adamu, a former inspector-general of police, was declared the winner of a replacement primary held in Lafia, the Nasarawa State capital, on Saturday after Angbazo withdrew from the contest.

The development has added a new twist to preparations for the 2027 governorship election in the north-central state.
The party’s electoral committee chairman in Nasarawa, Joseph Achille, said 28,637 delegates participated in the exercise, which was conducted across the state’s 13 local government areas.

Adamu was the sole candidate in the primary and was subsequently declared the winner after the votes were collated.
“Having scored the total votes peacefully and lawfully, it gives me the singular privilege, by the powers conferred on me by the National Executive Committee and the National Working Committee, to declare the result that Mohammed Adamu scored the highest lawful, valid votes,” Achille said.

He then declared Adamu the SDP’s candidate for the 2027 governorship election.
The replacement comes only days after the Independent National Electoral Commission listed Angbazo as the SDP candidate, raising questions over the party’s nomination process and the steps required to formally recognise Adamu as its new standard-bearer.
In his acceptance speech, Adamu thanked party delegates and promised to offer what he described as an alternative to the current administration in Nasarawa.

He said his administration would focus on improving infrastructure and expanding access to social services, particularly in rural communities.

“We will not neglect social amenities that are required. We’ve gone round the state; we have seen all the roads that are in the hinterlands are neglected. We’ll make sure that we take care of those,” he said.
Adamu also identified healthcare and agriculture as sectors requiring greater government attention, saying development should not be concentrated in the state capital and other urban centres.

The former police chief further raised concerns about the management of Nasarawa’s mineral resources, arguing that residents should benefit more directly from the state’s natural wealth.

He said his campaign would focus on specific commitments for individual local government areas rather than broad political promises.
“During the campaign, we are going to be specific in all that we will do, and telling our people what we are going to do word-by-word, local government-by-local government,” Adamu said.

Adamu served as Nigeria’s inspector-general of police between 2019 and 2021. His entry into the race gives the SDP a high-profile candidate as political parties begin positioning themselves for the 2027 elections.