Taraba State, located in eastern Nigeria along the border with Cameroon, has been governed by military administrators and elected governors since its creation in 1991. Before then, the territory formed part of Gongola State, which was created on 3 February 1976 from the former Adamawa and Sardauna provinces of North-Eastern State and the Wukari division of Benue-Plateau State, with Yola as its capital. Gongola State was divided on 27 August 1991 to create the present-day Adamawa and Taraba states.
Taraba was initially administered by Adeyemi Afolahan before the start of the Third Republic. Jolly Nyame of the Social Democratic Party (SDP) then became the state's first elected governor, serving from January 1992 until the November 1993 coup. Military administrators subsequently governed the state until 1999, including Yohanna Dickson, Amen Edore Oyakhire, and Aina Owoniyi. With the return to civilian rule under the Fourth Republic in 1999, Nyame returned as governor on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and served until 2007. He was succeeded by Danbaba Suntai, who held office from 2007 to 2015. Suntai's incapacitation after an aircraft crash in October 2012 led to a succession dispute in which Garba Umar and Sani Danladi served as acting governor. Darius Ishaku served as governor from 2015 to 2023. The incumbent, Agbu Kefas, was elected in 2023 as the PDP candidate and joined the All Progressives Congress (APC) in January 2026.
List of governors Gongola State Gongola State was created on 3 February 1976 during the nationwide state-creation exercise of the military government of Murtala Mohammed. It incorporated the former Adamawa and Sardauna provinces of North-Eastern State and the Wukari Division of Benue-Plateau State, with Yola as its capital. The state existed until 27 August 1991, when it was divided into the present-day Adamawa and Taraba states.
The first military governor of Gongola State was Mohammed Jega, who served from March 1976 to July 1978. He was succeeded by Abdul Rahman Mamudu, who remained in office until the restoration of civilian rule in October 1979. During the Second Republic, Abubakar Barde of the Great Nigeria People's Party (GNPP) became the state's first elected civilian governor. Barde's deputy, Wilberforce Juta, became governor on 6 May 1983 and served until 30 September 1983. Bamanga Tukur of the National Party of Nigeria (NPN) then became governor after winning the 1983 gubernatorial election, but his tenure ended with the December 1983 coup. Military rule resumed in January 1984, with Jega returning as military governor until August 1985. He was followed by Yohanna Madaki (1985–1986), Jonah David Jang (1986–1987), Isa Mohammed (1987–1989), and Abubakar Salihu (1989–1992). Salihu was the final governor of Gongola State and became the first governor of Adamawa State when Gongola was split in August 1991.
Taraba State Taraba State was created in 1991 from the former Gongola State, with Jalingo as its capital. Located in eastern Nigeria along the border with Cameroon, it forms part of the Middle Belt and has an economy based on agriculture, fishing, herding, and logging. During the Third Republic, Jolly Nyame of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) became the state's first elected governor and served until the November 1993 coup. Military administrators who governed the state after the return of military rule included Yohanna Dickson, Amen Edore Oyakhire, and Aina Owoniyi.
Following the return to civilian rule with the Fourth Republic in 1999, Nyame returned as governor. He was succeeded in 2007 by Danbaba Suntai. Suntai's period in office was followed by a succession crisis involving Garba Umar and Sani Danladi. After Suntai's incapacitating plane crash in October 2012, a power struggle developed between loyalists described as a "cabal" and Umar, the acting governor who had replaced the impeached Danladi. The Supreme Court resolved the crisis in November 2014 by reinstating Danladi and ruling his 2012 impeachment unconstitutional. Danladi subsequently annulled actions taken by Umar. The office passed to Darius Ishaku in 2015, and he served until 2023. Agbu Kefas was elected on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party in 2023. In January 2026, while still in office, he defected to the All Progressives Congress.
+ Heads of the government of Taraba StateGovernorTerm in officePartyElectionAdeyemi Ambrose Afolahan–2 January 1992Military administratorOffice did not existJolly Tavoro Nyame–17 November 1993 SDP1991Yohanna Mamman Dickson–22 August 1996Military administratorOffice abolishedAmen Edore Oyakhire–August 1998Aina Joseph Owoniyi–29 May 1999Jolly Tavoro Nyame–29 May 2007 PDP19992003()()Danbaba Suntai–29 May 2015 PDP20072011()()Garba Umar–21 November 2014 Acting governorSani Abubakar Danladi–29 May 2015 Acting governorDarius Dickson Ishaku–29 May 2023 PDP20152019Agbu Kefas–Incumbent PDP2023 APC
See also List of state governors of Nigeria
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