Tinubu’s 1.5m vote target in Osun unrealistic, says Oyetola’s ex-aide
A former Chief Press Secretary to ex-Osun State Governor Gboyega Oyetola, Ismail Omipidan, has described the proposed target of 1.5 million votes for President Bola Tinubu in Osun State in the 2027 general election as unrealistic.
Omipidan warned that the target and emerging political arrangements surrounding Tinubu’s re-election campaign could undermine the All Progressives Congress (APC) by alienating loyal party members and weakening grassroots mobilisation.
In an opinion article, he expressed concern over the reported emergence of Governor Ademola Adeleke as Osun coordinator of Tinubu’s 2027 re-election campaign, arguing that the arrangement could create resentment if established APC structures were sidelined. Adeleke, who contested on the platform of the Accord Party, defeated the APC in the August 15, 2026, governorship election.
He said he first heard about the 1.5 million-vote target less than 24 hours after the APC lost the governorship election, adding that its subsequent repetition by the party’s National Secretary, Senator Ajibola Basiru, heightened his concerns.
Citing previous presidential election results, Omipidan said Osun had never recorded up to one million votes for a presidential candidate. He noted that the APC polled 383,603 votes in 2015, 347,634 in 2019 and 342,941 in 2023, while the PDP secured 249,929, 337,377 and 353,860 votes in the respective elections.
“Historically, Osun State has never posted up to a million votes in any presidential election, and it will not happen next year, unless some persons just want to write figures,” he said, urging the party to set realistic targets based on the state’s electoral history and voter participation.
Omipidan also cautioned against political arrangements that could create divisions between Tinubu and Oyetola, the Minister of Marine and Blue Economy, warning that APC members who feel excluded could become less committed to the president’s re-election campaign.
“President Tinubu and Oyetola must tread softly and cautiously,” he wrote, urging the party leadership to reconcile competing interests, strengthen its structures and ensure that loyal members remain actively involved in grassroots mobilisation.
