Barely two years after the Court of Appeal voided their 2023 elections to the National Assembly, at least three Plateau politicians have obtained tickets to try again, this time, on the platform of the All Progressives Congress (APC).
Their resurgence followed Governor Caleb Mutfwang’s defection from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), which collapsed opposition ranks and reordered the state’s political hierarchy ahead of the 2027 general elections.
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The comeback candidates were among lawmakers displaced by appellate judgements that faulted the PDP’s internal structure during the 2023 nomination process.
Instead of receding from relevance, the affected politicians regrouped, defected en bloc with the governor, and deployed that new alignment to clinch APC tickets at the expense of sitting lawmakers.
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Judicial reset that rewired Plateau politics
In a series of judgements delivered in 2023, the Court of Appeal in Abuja voided the elections of several Plateau lawmakers, ruling that the PDP lacked a valid and recognised party structure when it conducted its primaries.
The decisions overturned victories at both the National Assembly and state levels, triggering by-elections and reshaping partisan calculations across the state.
What initially appeared to be a judicial intervention to enforce party rules has since morphed into a deeper political reconfiguration, with displaced politicians re-emerging under a different banner, while incumbents—some elected as recently as 2023—found themselves exposed in newly crowded primaries.
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Comebacks engineered through APC primaries
One of the most prominent returnees is Simon Mwadkwon, the former Senate Minority Leader whose PDP mandate was nullified by the appellate court.
After defecting with the governor to the APC, Mr Mwadkwon secured the party’s ticket for Plateau North Senatorial District, defeating Dachung Mwadkwon, who had originally won election on the platform of the African Democratic Party (ADP) before joining the APC.
In the House of Representatives, former PDP lawmaker Beni Lar completed a similar return, emerging winner of the APC primary for Langtang North/Langtang South Federal Constituency after defeating Vincent Bulus.
Another court-sacked lawmaker, Dachung Bagos, also re-entered frontline politics after clinching the APC ticket for Jos South/Jos East Federal Constituency.
Labour Party defectors lose ground
The APC primaries proved costly for some lawmakers elected in 2023 on the platform of the Labour Party who later defected to the ruling party, apparently expecting insulation within the new coalition.
In Jos South/Jos East, Mr Bagos defeated Ajang Iliya, a Labour Party lawmaker who crossed over to the APC shortly after the governor’s defection.
In Jos North/Bassa Federal Constituency, Abubakar Shuaibu clinched the APC ticket after defeating Daniel Asama, another Labour Party-elected member who had switched allegiance.
House contests underline shifting power
Elsewhere across the state, the APC House of Representatives primaries reflected the same realignment.
In Qua’anpan/Shendam/Mikang Federal Constituency, Joe Dashe defeated John Dafaan to secure the ticket.
In Mangu/Bokkos, Ishaya Lalu emerged as the party’s candidate.
In Barkin Ladi/Riyom Federal Constituency, Dalyop Fom—elected in 2023 on the Labour Party platform before defecting—won the APC primary.
Idris Wase, a former deputy speaker of the House of Representatives, was returned unopposed in Wase Federal Constituency, while Yusuf Gagdi secured the ticket for Pankshin/Kanam/Kanke Federal Constituency, contrary to earlier reports that he was not declared the winner by the election umpire.
READ ALSO: Plateau APC primaries sweep out six federal lawmakers
Senate contests deepen the shake-up
The upheaval extended to the Senate. In Plateau Central Senatorial District, Bitrus Barji defeated incumbent Diket Plang to clinch the APC ticket.
In Plateau South, former governor Simon Bako Lalong emerged unopposed, completing the consolidation of senatorial tickets by the governor-aligned bloc.
A new political order
Party insiders attribute the success of the returning lawmakers largely to their collective defection with the governor, a move that hollowed out the PDP and drew politicians from the Labour Party, ADP and other platforms into a single, dominant APC coalition.
What began as court rulings meant to enforce internal party discipline has evolved into a broader political reset.
Lawmakers once removed by judicial fiat are back on the ballot under APC colours, some incumbents have been displaced, and the governor’s political structure now anchors the ruling party’s statewide strategy.
As preparations for the 2027 general elections gather pace, Plateau’s political map increasingly features familiar figures, politicians whose mandates were once ended by the courts, now seeking renewed legitimacy under a different political banner.
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