March 8, 2023/CSL Research
According to a This Day newspaper report, the Labour party won six senatorial seats and 34 in the House of Representatives in the just concluded federal legislative elections, making it the third most popular party in the 10th National Assembly. This was revealed at a meeting the Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Prof. Mahmood Yakubu held with Resident Electoral Commissioners (RECs) in Abuja. The chairman of the commission said winners had been declared for 423 national legislative seats while supplementary elections would be held in 46 constituencies.
Labour Party was created in 2002 and was previously known as the Party for Social Democracy (PSD) before changing to its current name the following year. The party was built on the ideology of social democracy, it aims to promote and defend social democratic principles and ideals for the purpose of achieving social justice, progress, and unity. Before the emergence of Peter Obi, the Labour party was considered a small party, with little or no presence in the 36 states and FCT. The Labour Party had only won one major election before the 2023 election, which was when Dr. Olusegun Mimiko became the governor of Ondo State on the party’s platform serving two terms.
Since the party was established in 2002, the LP has struggled like all others to break the dominance of both the APC and PDP, as they consistently shared the seats in the National Assembly, State House of Assembly, and the 36 states. The party also did not have a close shot at the presidency. The former governor of Anambra State, Peter Obi’s defection to the Labour Party changed the story for the less popular party, bringing the party to the fore of mainstream politics. Despite the growing popularity of the party’s candidate, the dominant parties dismissed his chances at the presidential poll. They repeatedly stated that the party was without structure and the party followers, popularly known as obidients were only vocal on social media.
Frustrated by the economic and security crisis the nation is currently facing, the youth, spurred on by the momentum of the End Sars protests, saw the current electoral cycle as an opportunity to make a clear political statement. This statement was made in the highly contested presidential elections, which saw Peter Obi coming a close third and polling 6.1millon votes and winning 11 states and the FCT. The Labour party also made significant political statements by winning Lagos (after —- years under an APC rule) and Nassarawa, both states which are controlled by the ruling party APC. The performance of the labour party shocked political analysts as not many people gave the party a chance prior to the election. As the March 11 governorship election fast approaches, the chances of the Labour party cannot be underestimated as they take their place as a major force in the political landscape of Nigeria.
