Deputy Senate President Barau Jibrin has emerged as the All Progressives Congress (APC) consensus candidate for the Kano North Senatorial District ahead of the 2027 general elections following the withdrawal of former Minister of State for Housing and Urban Development, Abdullahi Tijjani Gwarzo, from the race.
The development followed a series of high-level political consultations within the ruling party, culminating in an agreement among key stakeholders to back Barau for the senatorial ticket in a bid to avoid internal division ahead of the polls.
Sources at the meeting disclosed that Gwarzo agreed to step down after an appeal reportedly conveyed by Vice President Kashim Shettima on behalf of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu during a meeting held on Monday. The intervention was said to have paved the way for a unified position among APC leaders in Kano North.
Gwarzo formally announced his withdrawal at a follow-up stakeholders’ meeting held at the Kano State Government House on Tuesday. The gathering brought together prominent political figures from the state, including Kano State Governor Abba Yusuf, former Governor and ex-APC National Chairman Abdullahi Ganduje, House of Representatives member Abubakar Kabir Abubakar, Kano APC Chairman Umar Haruna Doguwa, and Deputy Governor Murtala Sule Garo.
Party insiders described the decision as part of broader efforts by the APC leadership to consolidate its political structure in Kano ahead of the 2027 elections, especially in Kano North, regarded as one of the most strategic senatorial zones in the state.
Barau, who currently represents Kano North in the Senate and serves as Deputy Senate President, remains one of the most influential political figures in northern Nigeria. His emergence as consensus candidate is expected to strengthen the APC’s position in the zone amid ongoing political realignments in Kano State.
