A powerful bloc within the Kwankwasiyya movement has formally thrown its weight behind a proposed presidential alliance between former Anambra State governor Peter Obi and former Kano State governor Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso for the 2027 general elections.

The group, operating under the banner of Kwankwaso Support Group 2027, is urging Nigerians to rally around what it describes as a transformative Obi-Kwankwaso ticket capable of challenging the dominance of the ruling All Progressives Congress and the Peoples Democratic Party.

Speaking in Kano, the group’s leader, Abba Gwale, said loyalists of Kwankwaso had carefully studied the evolving political landscape and concluded that a partnership with Obi offered the strongest platform for a credible third-force challenge.

He argued that the combination of Obi’s entrenched support base in the South and parts of the Middle Belt with Kwankwaso’s grassroots machinery in the North could redraw Nigeria’s electoral map and give disenchanted voters a viable alternative.

Gwale framed the proposal as a response to mounting frustration over insecurity, rising poverty, and what he called a widening disconnect between the political class and ordinary citizens struggling to survive.

According to him, both men have built reputations around frugality in public office, investment in education and infrastructure, and a populist appeal that resonates strongly with young people and low-income voters.

He insisted that the alliance is anchored on a shared promise to “rescue” Nigeria from economic hardship and governance failures, not on personal ambition or elite bargaining.

Gwale, who comes from the same constituency as Kano governor Abba Kabir Yusuf, dismissed speculation that Kwankwaso’s recent engagements with the ruling party were driven by a quest for patronage or excessive demands for appointments.

He maintained that any negotiations undertaken by the former governor were focused on securing tangible benefits and political inclusion for his supporters across the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory, whom he described as largely ordinary Nigerians living “from hand to mouth.”

With the 2027 race still taking shape and no formal declaration of a joint ticket from either Obi or Kwankwaso, the proposal remains speculative. Yet the intensity of advocacy from Kwankwaso’s base underscores a growing appetite for an opposition realignment that could test the strength of Nigeria’s traditional two-party structure.