Since Nigeria’s return to democracy in 1999, Akinwunmi Ambode is the only former governor of Lagos State who served just a single term.
Tinubu was governor from 1999 to 2007, after which he handed over to Fashola, who served from 2007 to 2015 before becoming Nigeria’s Minister of Works and Housing from 2015 to 2023.
Ambode assumed office in 2015 but lost his bid for re-election in the APC primary for the 2019 elections due to internal party conflicts.
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It was reported that Tinubu, a prominent APC figure in Lagos, supported the incumbent governor, Sanwo-Olu, over Ambode.
Since completing his single term in 2019, Ambode has largely been absent from political and social events involving his predecessors, Tinubu and Fashola, as well as from gatherings with the current governor.
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The former governor has been notably reserved, even at the few APC national events he attended, such as in May 2021 when he was appointed deputy chairman of the South-West sub-committee of the Contact and Strategy Committee.
There were speculations that Ambode might challenge Sanwo-Olu for the party’s governorship ticket in the May 2022 primary. Instead, his ally, Wale Oluwo, contested but lost to Sanwo-Olu.
Unlike Fashola and Sanwo-Olu, Ambode did not publicly support Tinubu’s 2023 presidential bid and refrained from commenting on Tinubu’s victory after the elections.
However, signs of reconciliation emerged when Sanwo-Olu attended Ambode’s 60th birthday celebration in Lagos on June 14, 2023.
