Nigerian president launches reelection bid during a cost-of-living crisis and a fractured opposition

Nigerian President Bola Tinubu has launched his reelection campaign during a cost-of-living crisis and a fractured oppositionByDYEPKAZAH SHIBAYAN Associated PressOctober 24, 2026, 3:32 PMABUJA, Nigeria -- Nigerian President Bola Tinubu launched his reelection bid Saturday, campaigning at a rally for a second presidential term during a cost-of-living crisis and a fractured opposition.The presidential election will be held in January against the backdrop of a worsening economy that has caused anger among voters against Tinubu’s government, but which Tinubu blamed on opposition parties.“I hear my opponents talking about hunger and poverty. Who created it? They did,” he said at a rally in the northwestern state of Kaduna. “They created the hunger, they created the poverty. We are trying to eradicate it."Tinubu is being challenged by over a dozen opposition candidates, but analysts predict a three-man race between Tinubu and the two contenders he defeated in 2023. They are former Vice President Atiku Abubakar of the African Democratic Congress, or ADC, a serial presidential candidate, and Peter Obi of the Nigeria Democratic Congress, or NDC, a former state governor who blew the last rac...