Duke made this known on Friday, September 7, 2018 on his Twitter handle after submitting his presidential nomination form to SDP.

The former Cross River State governor said he joined the SDP to run for the office of president in the 2019 election because his former party, PDP had unconstitutionally zoned political offices.

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Read Donald Duke's reason for quitting PDP

In a series of tweets, Duke said his decision came after deep reflection and candid assessment of the Nigerian polity.

"Firstly, my erstwhile party, the PDP has unconstitutionally zoned political offices.

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"As rational as they may see it, it remains unconstitutional and there are not enough strong voices out there speaking up objectively. Besides, democracy is all about choice, how then do we limit the choices we have to some section of the country or the other?

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"Can we under such aegis obtain the best? Nigeria can only be whole when the sum total of its parts are able to contest freely and at will for the highest office in the land.

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"Some folks have espoused that only two parties have the physical presence nationwide to win the presidency in a general election. I disagree. Our fate as Nigerians should not be determined by two underperforming platforms, but rather by we ourselves.

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"By joining the race on the platform of the SDP, I hope my participation enriches the playing field and offers Nigerians a wider berth of options other than a zero some playing field of either the APC or the PDP. Thank you.

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