Studying the ceiling for Northern Nigerian women in politics
Source: Centre for Democracy & Development (CDD-West Africa)
Despite the narrative that women in the north are not as ‘active’ in frontline politics as women from other regions of the country, there are many examples that dispel that notion. In three of the last four general elections, there has been at least a prominent gubernatorial bid by a woman in a northern state.
In 2011, after serving as the first northern female deputy governor, Pauline Tallen contested the Plateau state governorship election as a member of the Labour Party and finished second behind her boss, Jonah Jang. In 2015, Aisha Alhassan, popularly known as Mama Taraba, sought to get elected in Taraba and similarly finished second. However, her bid was closely followed because she was a candidate of the eventual ruling All Progressives Congress and had been declared winner by a court injunction – the first such announcement.
Click here to read the full article published by The Centre for Democracy & Development (CDD-West Africa) on 10 May 2023.
Despite the narrative that women in the north are not as ‘active’ in frontline politics as women from other regions of the country, there are many examples that dispel that notion. In three of the last four general elections, there has been at least a prominent gubernatorial bid by a woman in a northern state.
In 2011, after serving as the first northern female deputy governor, Pauline Tallen contested the Plateau state governorship election as a member of the Labour Party and finished second behind her boss, Jonah Jang. In 2015, Aisha Alhassan, popularly known as Mama Taraba, sought to get elected in Taraba and similarly finished second. However, her bid was closely followed because she was a candidate of the eventual ruling All Progressives Congress and had been declared winner by a court injunction – the first such announcement.
Click here to read the full article published by The Centre for Democracy & Development (CDD-West Africa) on 10 May 2023.