Chinda, Wike’s Loyalist, Emerges APC Governorship Candidate In Rivers

Former Minority Leader of the House of Representatives, Hon. Kingsley Chinda, has been elected as the candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) for the 2027 governorship election in Rivers State.

LEADERSHIP observed that although Chinda, a close ally of the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Chief Nyesom Wike, secured votes across the 316 wards in the state.

Announcing the result at the APC collation centre in Port Harcourt, the Chairman of the party’s governorship primary election committee, Kwanoti Bitrus, said the federal lawmaker, who represents Obio/Akpor Federal Constituency in the House of Representatives, scored a total of 268,497 votes.

“I, Kwanoti Bitrus, Chairman of the Governorship Primary Election Committee, hereby certify that, as the Returning Officer of the Rivers State Governorship Primary Election held today, 21st May 2026, the aspirant, Chinda Ogundu Kingsley, was the sole aspirant.

“He scored a total of 268,497 votes. Chinda Ogundu Kingsley, having satisfied the requirements of the APC Constitution and having scored the highest number of votes, is hereby declared winner of the primary election and is returned elected,” he said.

The committee chairman thanked the APC chairman in the state, Chief Tony Okocha, and party faithful for providing a conducive environment for the committee to discharge its duties.

“We thank members of the All Progressives Congress in Rivers State, most especially the state party chairman, for providing a conducive environment for us to discharge this assignment. We are very grateful for that.

“We also want to appreciate the people of Rivers State. We visited four locations to observe the exercise, and we were satisfied with what we saw,” Bitrus said.

Recall that Governor Siminalayi Fubara and two other governorship aspirants, Architect Tonye Cole and Dr Dakorisiye George-Kelly, withdrew from the race hours before the commencement of the exercise.