On June 27, 2025, former Senate President David Mark announced his resignation from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), citing its deepening leadership crisis and irreconcilable differences that have reduced the party to a “shadow of its former self.” In a statement from Otukpo Ward 1, Benue State, Mark, a founding PDP member who served as Senate President from 2007 to 2015, expressed frustration over the party’s internal divisions, particularly the dispute over the National Secretary position and Acting National Chairman Umar Damagum’s unilateral actions. He joined the African Democratic Congress (ADC) as Interim National Chairman, alongside former Osun Governor Rauf Aregbesola as Interim National Secretary, as part of the National Coalition of Political Opposition Movement aiming to unseat the All Progressives Congress (APC) in 2027.
Mark highlighted his past efforts to rebuild the PDP post-2015 election losses, but recent events, including the cancellation of the 100th NEC meeting and factional battles between Nyesom Wike and Seyi Makinde’s camps, prompted his exit. The ADC, adopted by the coalition on June 24, 2025, is positioning itself as a formidable opposition platform, bolstered by high-profile defections like former Kaduna Governor Nasir El-Rufai and potential talks with figures like Atiku Abubakar and Peter Obi (Punch, June 20, 2025). Mark’s move follows a pattern of PDP defections, with 15 prominent figures joining the APC in 2024 (web:0,5,6), amid public discontent with 33.9% inflation (NBS April 2025) and 2,500 terrorism deaths in Q1 2025 (ACLED).
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