The race for Nigeria’s 2027 presidency includes five candidates aged 48 or younger, with the youngest contender, Moses Olusoji Adebisi, at 35. The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) published the final list of 18 presidential candidates for the January 2027 election, and Adebisi, running under the Democratic Leadership Alliance (DLA), is the youngest person on the ballot. His running mate is Nafisat Usaku Abubakar.
Two candidates on the list are 43 years old. Sunday Chibuzo Okereke is the presidential candidate for the Labour Party, with Hajja Bintu Kontoas as his running mate. Nkem Esther Okereke, also 43, is the presidential candidate for the National Rescue Movement (NRM). She is one of two female presidential candidates on INEC’s final list.
Aliyu Abbas-Bin, 44, is the presidential candidate for the Action Democratic Party (ADP). His running mate is Chinazam Ike.
The oldest of the five youngest candidates is Ada Elizabeth Fredrick Okwori, 48, of the National Democratic Party (NDP). Okwori is the second female presidential candidate in the race. Her running mate is Uchenna Anthony Chukwuemeka.
The age gap across the full field is wide. The youngest candidate on the ballot is 35, while the oldest is 79. INEC’s list includes 16 male candidates and two female candidates, all sponsored by different political parties.
The inclusion of younger candidates alongside contenders in their late seventies gives the 2027 race a spread of generations. Adebisi, at 35, is contesting for the highest office in the country at an age when many politicians are still building their careers in state assemblies or local government. His party, the DLA, is among the smaller platforms contesting the presidency, and his running mate, Abubakar, is listed on the ticket alongside him.
The Labour Party’s Okereke enters the race at 43. The party has been a significant opposition force in recent election cycles, and its candidate will carry that platform into the 2027 contest. Kontoas is listed as his running mate.
NRM’s Nkem Okereke shares the same age as her Labour Party counterpart. Her presence on the ballot makes her one of only two women running for president in the upcoming election. The NRM ticket lists her as the party’s presidential candidate.
ADP’s Abbas-Bin, at 44, is the third-youngest candidate on the list. His running mate, Ike, is named on the INEC document as his vice-presidential pick.
Okwori, 48, rounds out the youngest group. The NDP candidate is the older of the two women in the race, and her ticket includes Uchenna Anthony Chukwuemeka as her running mate.
INEC’s release of the final list confirms the full roster of candidates who will appear on the ballot. The commission’s document names all 18 presidential candidates and their respective parties, giving voters a clear picture of the field before the January election. The list shows a mix of established political parties and smaller movements, with candidates ranging from 35 to 79 years old.
The two female candidates, Okereke of the NRM and Okwori of the NDP, represent a small share of the field. Their campaigns will run alongside 16 male candidates.
The age of the youngest candidates puts them in a different bracket from the older contenders. A 35-year-old presidential candidate and a 79-year-old candidate are separated by more than four decades, a gap that will likely shape how each campaign speaks to voters. The younger candidates are all under 50, an age range that places them in a different generational cohort from the older figures in the race.
INEC’s final list is the official record of who will contest the election. The document lists each candidate’s party affiliation and running mate, and it confirms the ages of the five youngest contenders. Adebisi, Okereke, Okereke, Abbas-Bin, and Okwori are the five candidates aged 48 or younger on the ballot.
The 2027 election will proceed with these 18 candidates, and the youngest among them, Adebisi, will campaign as a 35-year-old seeking the presidency. The list is now public, and the candidates are set.
According to Pulse.ng.
