Atiku Abubakar has emerged as the favourite among Nigerian Muslim voters ahead of the 2023 presidential election.
The significant outcome has threatened the sentimental vote-catching strategy to secure Northern Muslim votes coupled by All Progressives Congress, APC, presidential standard bearer, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, in the garden putting of a Muslim-Muslim presidential joint ticket.
The latest opinion conducted by policy advisory firm, Nexiter, however, placed Peter Obi of Labour Party as a clear leader among the major candidates.
The poll was conducted among thecrueal populations.
Obi led with 40.37 percent of respondents who said they had intention to vote, while Atiku came second with 26.7 percent. Tinubu came third with 20.47 percent.
According to the poll, Obi won in the Southeast, South-South and North-Central. Atiku one in the Northwest and Northeast. Tinubu won in the Southwest with 37% with Obi in hot pursuit at 24%.
Patrick Okigbo III, the team lead of Nexiter, in a review of the latest poll said that Atiku beat Tinubu among likely voters who identified themselves as Muslims.
Tinubu had chosen Senator Kashim Shettima, a northern Mudlim and Kanuri man, on the claim that he was the best choice among those available for appointment as his running mate.
The choice of a northern Muslim was calculated to bolster support among the Muslim population in the core North for the Tinuhu/Shettima ticket.
However, speaking on Arise TV, on Tuesday morning, Okigbo III said that the majority of Muslim voters in the North preferred Atiku.
It is a result that is bound to be distressing for the Tinubu campaign given the opposition from many Christians over his choice of a Muslim-Muslim ticket.
Obi had also won similar opinion polls conducted by ANAP Foundation and Bloomberg. However, those polls were claimed to have been biased towards those living in the urban areas.
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