El-Rufai, who was instrumental in the 2013 merger that formed the APC, had earlier accused the ruling party of departing from its original vision.
By Kehinde Okeowo
After vowing to ensure the ruling All Progressives Party (APC) doesn’t return to power in 2027, former Kaduna State governor, Nasir El-Rufai, has formally joined the African Democratic Congress (ADC).
He completed his registration and received his membership card at the ADC office in Ungwar Sarki Ward, Kaduna State.
The move occurred just a few days after the 2023 Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) presidential candidate, Atiku was formally welcomed to the ADC.
El-Rufai, a founding member of the APC, left the party earlier this year for the Social Democratic Party (SDP).
At the time he was leaving the ruling party in March, the former Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) said he could no longer remain in a party he believed had drifted from the principles that guided its formation.
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He had earlier accused the APC leadership of abandoning its founding ideals, warning that the party had become unresponsive to internal concerns and no longer embodied the progressive values it once championed.
According to him, for two years he persistently raised issues—both publicly and behind closed doors—about what he described as the party’s troubling direction, but his concerns were repeatedly ignored.
El-Rufai, who was instrumental in the 2013 merger that formed the APC, had earlier accused the ruling party of departing from its original vision, noting that recent developments indicated little willingness among its leadership to acknowledge or address what he termed an “unhealthy” internal climate.
His official move to ADC signals his next political chapter, strengthening the party’s profile in Kaduna State and beyond as political realignments continue ahead of future elections.
In his resignation letter from SDP, dated November 26, 2025, El-Rufai said that his focus is on contributing to the creation of a unified democratic platform capable of offering a credible political alternative to the people of Nigeria.
“I wish to notify you that I have resigned my membership of the Social Democratic Party, SDP, effective 26 November 2025,” he said.
