Benue: Suswam declares 2027 senatorial bid

Former Governor of Benue State, Senator Gabriel Suswam, has officially announced his plan to vie for the Benue North-East Senatorial District seat in the 2027 general elections under the All Progressives Congress (APC) banner.

Suswam made the announcement on Monday during an interview with Arise TV.

Recall that the former governor had, in February, announced his defection from the Peoples Democratic Party to the ruling party, although the PDP claimed he had effectively left the party long ago.

Speaking on Monday, Suswam described the move as a “political realignment” driven by conviction rather than personal interest.

According to him, Benue State historically usually aligns with a single dominant party, and the state was under PDP control before shifting to the APC.

He noted that his move aligns with the will of the majority in the state.

“Benue State, since I started politics in 1998, is a place where the people believe in one party.

“Benue State for its first 16 years was completely a PDP state. And then subsequently after that, they moved to the APC.

“As a Benue son, I won’t be an exception to what my people want and what my people believe. They now believe in the principles and philosophy of the APC,” he said.

On his 2027 ambition, the two-term former governor said, “I’m a politician. And as a politician, if you are still strong enough to contest an election, you always want to contest elections.

“The only election that I can contest now is the Senate. Of course, I can’t go back to run for governor; even if I want to run for that, the Constitution forbids me from running for governor again.

“So of course, I’ll be running for Senate.”