Prince Sunday Fagbemi Returns as Kwara APC Chairman, Signaling Strategic Shift Toward Kwara North or Central for 2027 Governorship

Prince Sunday Fagbemi returns as Kwara APC Chairman. Analysis of how his re-election shifts the 2027 governorship focus to Kwara North and Central.

By: AXL Media

Published: Mar 4, 2026, 4:11 AM EST

Source: The information in this article was sourced from Independent Newspaper Nigeria

Affirmation of Leadership

The Kwara APC state congress, held on Tuesday at the Arca Santa Arena in Ilorin, concluded with the unopposed return of Prince Sunday Fagbemi. The exercise, overseen by the APC Congress Committee Chairman Alkali Alibe, saw the entire State Working Committee affirmed by delegates from all 16 Local Government Areas. This continuity in leadership is viewed as a vote of confidence in Fagbemi's ability to manage the internal friction inevitable in a transition year.

The Zoning Arithmetic

In Kwara politics, the distribution of the "Big Three" positions—Governor, Party Chairman, and Speaker—traditionally follows a regional balance between Kwara North, Central, and South.

Current Status: Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq hails from Kwara Central.

The Logic: With Fagbemi (Kwara South) retaining the Chairmanship, political analysts argue it becomes strategically difficult for the party to pick a 2027 governorship candidate from the South.