Nasir El-Rufai, the former Kaduna State governor, has walked away from the All Progressives Congress (APC) and thrown his weight behind the Social Democratic Party (SDP). In a scathing statement released Monday, March 10, 2025, El-Rufai accused the APC leadership of abandoning the progressive ideals that once defined the party, signaling the end of his tenure with the ruling coalition.
“At this juncture in my political journey, I can no longer stomach the APC’s drift,” El-Rufai declared. “The party has castrated its own organs and treated its members with contempt over the past two years. I’m done—I’ve joined the SDP to pursue the values I hold dear.” He submitted his resignation to his ward in Kaduna North, urging supporters and Nigerians frustrated with the status quo to follow him to the SDP as a united front against the APC in future elections.
El-Rufai’s defection caps months of tension with the APC’s top brass. For two years, he said, he’d raised red flags—both privately and publicly—about the party’s downward spiral, only to be met with indifference. “The current leadership refuses to even acknowledge the mess, let alone fix it,” he lamented. His eight years as Kaduna governor (2015–2023), marked by ambitious human development policies, now feel like a footnote in an APC he deems unrecognizable.
The move follows a string of high-profile meetings with political heavyweights like Atiku Abubakar, Tunde Bakare, and ex-President Muhammadu Buhari—hints of a brewing exit. It also comes after clashes with President Bola Tinubu’s administration, which El-Rufai once championed. Back in 2023, he and other northern APC powerbrokers pushed for a southern candidate, backing Tinubu over northern rivals like Ahmad Lawan and Mohammed Badaru. Tinubu won the ticket and the presidency—but the alliance soured fast.
Three months into Tinubu’s term, El-Rufai’s ministerial nomination hit a wall when the Senate rejected him, citing security concerns flagged by the DSS. Since that August 2023 snub, he’s been a ghost at APC gatherings, skipping the national caucus and NEC meetings. Sightings with SDP leaders fueled defection rumors he once brushed off—until now.
The rift extends beyond Abuja. In Kaduna, El-Rufai’s relationship with his successor, Sani Uba, has crumbled, with the state assembly probing his administration for alleged corruption—a charge he vehemently denies. Once a Tinubu kingmaker, El-Rufai now stands as a defector poised to challenge the APC’s grip.
