No fewer than 5,000 members and supporters of the Peoples Democratic Party in Ogun State have defected to the ruling All Progressives Congress ahead of the 2027 general elections.
The defectors, drawn largely from the Ogun West Senatorial District, were formally received into the APC during a ceremony held on Sunday at Ilaro, the headquarters of Yewa South Local Government Area of the state.
Those who received the new members included Ogun State Governor, Dapo Abiodun; the APC governorship candidate and Senator representing Ogun West, Solomon Adeola, popularly known as Yayi; and the state chairman of the party, Yemi Sanusi.
The development comes as political parties in Ogun intensify mobilisation activities ahead of the 2027 elections.
Speaking on behalf of the defectors, former Ogun State PDP chairman, Sikirullahi Ogundele, said he decided to leave the opposition party after spending seven years in the organisation.
Ogundele attributed his decision to what he described as internal difficulties within the PDP. He also pointed to the movement of some prominent politicians and governors away from the party as evidence, in his view, of a deepening crisis within the opposition party.
He described his decision and that of the other defectors as an effort to move away from what he called “political slavery” and pledged to deploy their political experience to support the APC.
Ogundele also addressed controversy surrounding Adeola’s eligibility and Ogun roots, describing questions about the senator’s origin as a recurring feature of governorship contests in the state. He cited previous controversies involving former Ogun governors and argued that similar claims had not prevented them from winning elections.
His comments on the 2027 election, however, represented the position of the defectors rather than an established prediction of the election outcome.
Among those reported to have joined the APC alongside Ogundele were former PDP state publicity secretary Akinloye Bankole, former Yewa North Local Government chairman Soji Eweje, Ganiu Dada, former PDP Woman Leader Kemi Adeyemi, Sina Adejobi and other party figures.
Receiving the defectors, Sanusi presented the APC’s broom symbol to the new members and assured them that they would retain their political relevance within the ruling party.
He urged them to begin mobilisation at the ward level and participate actively in the party’s activities ahead of the 2027 elections.
Governor Abiodun, while welcoming the defectors, said the APC would accommodate and integrate them into the party. He described their decision to join the ruling party as significant and called for unity among existing members and the new entrants.
Abiodun also urged the new members to work with other APC supporters towards the party’s objectives in the state.
The defection adds another development to the evolving political landscape in Ogun State ahead of the 2027 elections. The APC has continued its grassroots mobilisation, while the PDP and other opposition parties face the task of maintaining and expanding their political structures across the state.
The reported number of defectors was put at about 5,000 by PUNCH and several other reports. One separate report attributed a claim of more than 20,000 defectors to the APC, showing that figures circulating about the size of the movement are not consistent.
The 2027 elections will ultimately determine the electoral significance of the latest movement of politicians and party members between the two parties.
