Nigerian women are making gains in the economy but losing ground in politics, as a fresh round of party primaries ahead of the 2027 elections has produced few female candidates, deepening concerns that years of efforts to improve women’s representation in elective offices are yielding little progress.
Only three women emerged among the 19 presidential candidates for the 2027 election, while just three women won senatorial primaries, according to findings presented by gender rights advocates and electoral experts.
The development continues a long-standing pattern of weak female participation in Nigeria’s presidential politics.
No woman contested the 1999 presidential election won by Olusegun Obasanjo. The strongest showing came in 2003 when two of the 20 presidential candidates were women, Sarah Jubril of the Progressive Action Congress and Mojisola Adekunle Obasanjo of the Masses Movement of Nigeria.
Jubril polled 157,560 votes, the highest number recorded by a female presidential candidate in a Nigerian presidential election.
