David Mark reacts as Atiku clinches ADC Presidential ticket

The National Chairman of the African Democratic Congress, ADC, Senator David Mark, has reacted to the emergence of former Vice President Atiku Abubakar as the party’s presidential candidate for the 2027 election.

Mark said Atiku’s victory at the ADC presidential primary showed that the party was committed to democracy, fairness and internal competition.

Speaking at the official collation and declaration of results in Abuja, the former Senate President said the primary was not just about producing a flagbearer but about proving that democracy could still work in Nigeria.

According to him, the ADC had shown that political parties could organise themselves around principles and not personalities.

Mark said the party deliberately allowed a free contest instead of imposing a candidate through elite arrangements or predetermined decisions.

He said the ADC was not a platform where a few powerful interests would decide the fate of members before voting took place.

The ADC chairman congratulated Atiku on his victory and urged him to unite all members of the party ahead of the 2027 general elections.

He said the party had placed its trust in the former Vice President and expected him to build bridges across all camps within the ADC.

Mark also commended former Rivers State Governor and ex-Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi, and former Chairman of the Nigeria Economic Summit Group, Mohammed Hayatu-Deen, for taking part in the contest.

He said their participation helped strengthen democracy within the party and proved that the ADC was serious about credible internal elections.

The former Senate President also revealed that he met privately with the three aspirants before the primary, where he urged them to place the interest of Nigerians above personal ambition.

Mark said many Nigerians were looking up to the ADC to provide an alternative to the current political order, adding that the party could not afford to disappoint them.

He admitted that organising direct primaries across the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory came with difficulties, especially as the party was conducting an exercise of that scale for the first time.

However, he insisted that the process was credible, free and fair.

Mark described the ADC as a social democratic party committed to people-centred governance, saying the party’s ideology is built around improving the lives of ordinary Nigerians.

He said the current hardship, insecurity and loss of public confidence in leadership made the 2027 election very important.

He urged members and supporters of the party to remain united behind Atiku as the ADC prepares for the general election.

According to him, the outcome of the primary should send a message that the ADC stands for fairness, inclusion and democratic integrity.