By SN24.com 
By Peter Akpah.
Hon. David Bitrus Barji has emerged winner of the All Progressives Congress primary for the Plateau Central Senatorial District, securing the party’s ticket for the 2027 general election with a landslide margin.
The result was announced on 18 May 2026 by Hon. Sadat Garga, the returning officer appointed by the APC National Headquarters to oversee the exercise. Voting took place across the five local government areas of the district: Bokkos, Mangu, Pankshin, Kanke, and Kanam.
Garga, a former ranking member of the Plateau State House of Assembly, said he collated results submitted by returning officers from each LGA before making the declaration.
Barji polled 57,727 votes to defeat six other aspirants in the contest. The margin placed him far ahead of the rest of the field.
According to the results announced at the coalition centre, Senator Diket Satso Plang scored 1,423 votes, while Ephraim U. Gar polled 1,322 votes. Piwuna Z. John secured 670 votes, Beatrice C. James had 652 votes, and James S. Yusuf recorded 574 votes.
No vote total was announced for another aspirant, Manklik I. Mashingil.
Garga stated that the declared winner met all requirements stipulated in the APC constitution and electoral guidelines. He therefore formally returned Barji as the party’s senatorial candidate for Plateau Central.
The declaration marked the conclusion of the primary process conducted simultaneously across the five LGAs of the district on the same day.
With the result, Barji is set to fly the APC flag in Plateau Central in the 2027 senatorial election.
Party officials said the exercise was conducted in line with party directives and commended delegates and aspirants for maintaining order throughout the process.