JUST IN: 4 Senators, 3 Reps Dump PDP for APC, Citing Party Crisis
Abuja, Nigeria – July 17, 2025
The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) suffered a major setback on Wednesday as four senators and three members of the House of Representatives officially defected to the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), citing deepening internal crises and irreconcilable differences within the opposition party.
Their defection letters were read on the floor of the Senate by Senate President Godswill Akpabio, who acknowledged the lawmakers’ reasons and directed the Clerk of the Senate to formally document the development.
The latest defection significantly alters the political balance in the Red Chamber, boosting APC’s numerical strength to 70 seats, while the PDP drops to 28. Other parties represented in the Senate now include the Labour Party with 5 seats, the Social Democratic Party (SDP) with 2, the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP) with 1, and the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) with 1.
Similarly, in the House of Representatives, Speaker Tajudeen Abbas announced the defection of three PDP lawmakers during plenary. The defectors include two lawmakers from Osun State and one from Edo State, who also pointed to the unresolved leadership crisis and factionalism plaguing the PDP as their reason for switching allegiance.
In their separate statements, the lawmakers noted that their decision was borne out of a loss of confidence in the PDP’s national leadership, which they described as being consumed by infighting and lacking direction.
“After careful consultation with our constituents and political stakeholders, we have resolved to join the APC in order to continue to provide the needed representation and service,” one of the defecting senators said.
The mass defection marks yet another blow to the PDP as the party struggles to maintain unity amid protracted internal disputes, legal tussles over leadership positions, and waning influence at the national level.
Political observers see the move as a potential realignment ahead of the 2027 general elections, with the APC tightening its grip on both chambers of the National Assembly.
