The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has officially zoned its 2027 presidential ticket to the Southern region of Nigeria. This significant decision was announced by the PDP National Publicity Secretary, Debo Ologunagba, following a National Executive Committee (NEC) meeting held in Abuja on Monday. The resolution stemmed from the recommendations presented in a report by the party's Zoning Committee, which was chaired by Bayelsa State Governor, Douye Diri, and approved after extensive deliberation by the NEC.

In addition to the presidential zoning, the PDP NEC also resolved to maintain the existing zoning formula for the party's National Working Committee (NWC) positions ahead of its National Elective Convention scheduled for November 2025. This means that all national office positions currently held in the northern region of the country will remain in the northern region, and similarly, all positions currently in the southern region will remain in the southern region. A key rationale for the presidential ticket being zoned to the South is the retained position of the National Chairman in the northern region, ensuring a balance in leadership distribution between the country's major geopolitical zones.

Governor Douye Diri, in his capacity as Chairman of the PDP Zoning Committee, clarified that the committee's mandate was strictly limited to zoning offices between the North and South, and not to engage in 'micro-zoning' of specific leadership positions within those regions. He emphasized that the focus was on the broader regional distribution of offices for the upcoming convention, and any further micro-zoning would be left for the regions themselves to determine for implementation.

The decision has been widely interpreted as a vindication of the stance taken by the Federal Capital Territory Minister, Nyesom Wike, and the 'G-5' group during the 2022 political cycle. At that time, Wike and his allies had strongly advocated for the principle that the PDP's presidential candidate and its National Chairman should not originate from the same zone. They had insisted that following the emergence of Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, a northerner, as the presidential candidate, the then-National Chairman, Senator Iyorchia Ayu, also from the North, ought to resign to allow for a National Chairman from the South. Ayu's refusal to step down, backed by Atiku's faction, was widely seen as a contributing factor to the party's electoral misfortunes in the 2023 general elections and subsequent internal instability.

Lere Olayinka, Senior Special Assistant to Minister Wike on Public Communications and Social Media, stated that the party has now realized its "mistake" from 2022 by adopting the principle that the G-5 had championed. He remarked that while the party is correcting this mistake in 2025 for the 2027 elections, questions remain about whether it is too late, especially concerning the demand for the South to conclude an eight-year presidential term before the presidency potentially returns to the North in 2031.

The PDP's 102nd NEC meeting also expressed confidence in the preparations for the forthcoming National Elective Convention, which is slated to take place on November 15 and 16, 2025, in Ibadan, Oyo State. Prior to this, governors elected on the PDP platform had convened a closed-door meeting in Gusau, Zamfara State, where discussions were believed to have centered on national issues, internal party strategy, and preparations for the 2027 general elections and the upcoming NEC convention. This move by the PDP comes amidst heightened political activity in Nigeria, as major parties strategize for the next electoral cycle, with the PDP keen to regain its footing after losing the presidency to the All Progressives Congress (APC) in 2015.